VALUATION  OF  i 
AMERICAN  TIMBERLANDS 

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The  Forest  Types  of  the  United  States 


Frontispiece 


The  Valuation 

of 

American  Timberlands 


BY 

K.   W.   WOODWARD 

Professor  of  Forestry,  New  Hampshire  College.    Formerly 
Forest  Inspector,  U.  S.  Forest  Service 


NEW  YORK 

JOHN  WILEY  &  SONS,  Inc. 

London;  CHAPMAN  &  HALL,  Liaoted 
1921 


COPYIIIGHT,   19  2 1, 
BY 

K.  W.  WOODWARD 


TECHNICAL    COMPOSITION    CO. 

CAMBRIDGE,    MASS.,    V.  S.  A. 


To 

DR.  BERXHARD   E.  FERNOW 

m   GRATITUDE   FOR   HIS   HELP   AND   ENCOURAGEMENT   AND 
ADMIRATION   OF  HIS  ACHIEVEJIENTS 


< 


PREFACE 

This  book  is  intended  to  supply  certain  information  needed 
by  the  investor,  timber  cruiser  and  student  of  forestry.  In  other 
words,  it  aims  to  give  for  the  continental  United  States  and  its 
outlying  territories  the  principal  facts  regarding  the  timber 
resources.  Hawaii  has  been  omitted  because  its  timber  is  useful 
mainly  for  its  protective  value  and  cutting  in  the  commercial 
sense  is  only  possible  on  a  very  limited  scale.  Likewise,  the  Canal 
Zone  is  not  attractive  to  either  the  sawmill  man  or  timberland 
investor  by  reason  of  the  restricted  area  of  American  territory. 

The  investor  will  find  data  which  will  not  only  enable  him  to 
form  a  notion  of  what  the  examination  of  a  tract  should  cost  but 
he  should  also  get  the  salient  features  of  the  general  type  of  which 
his  particular  holdings  are  but  a  small  part.  This  work  tries 
to  give  those  basic  facts  upon  which  a  superstructure  of  detailed 
knowledge  concerning  a  particular  tract  may  safely  be  erected. 

To  the  estimator  or  timber  cruiser,  Hkewise,  it  cannot  take 
the  place  of  first-hand  observation  as  far  as  the  appraisal  of  any 
given  area  is  concerned.  It  should,  however,  show  him  what  to 
look  for  and  help  him  to  keep  that  sense  of  proportion  without 
which  his  reports  may  easily  give  a  wholly  wrong  impression. 

For  the  student  of  forestry  it  should  fill  an  additional  purpose. 
Few  attempts  have  previously  been  made  to  gather  together  in 
one  volume  descriptions  of  the  forest  types  of  the  United  States. 
We  have  simply  had  detailed  studies  of  isolated  regions.  With 
these  latter  as  a  basis,  however,  an  attempt  is  here  made  to  evalu- 
ate American  forest  conditions  and  compare  the  forest  types  with 
each  other.  This  leads  inevitably  to  the  application  of  the 
principles  which  the  student  has  learned  in  his  courses  in  protec- 
tion, silviculture,  utilization  and  management.  In  other  words, 
it  is  hoped  he  may  here  acquire  some  of  the  local  color  necessary 
to  give  vividness  to  the  framework  of  fundamentals  he  has  con- 


VI  PREFACE 

structed  in  the  classroom.  The  book  was  written  to  serve  as 
supplementary  reading  in  this  way. 

A  forest  type  as  here  used  is  an  area  which  has  essentially  the 
same  climatic,  topographic,  and  soil  conditions,  and  hence  tends 
in  the  long  run  to  have  the  same  composition.  A  subtype  is  a 
subdivision  of  a  forest  type  in  which  the  composition  is  uniform. 

A  word  of  explanation  seems  necessary  in  regard  to  prices  now 
that  the  War  has  so  radically  disturbed  all  our  preconceptions 
of  market  values.  Obviously  it  is  impossible  to  keep  such  a  work 
as  this  absolutely  up  to  date.  Care  has,  however,  been  taken  to 
give  dates  for  all  prices  cited  as  that  proper  allowance  may  be 
made.  In  general  it  may  be  said  that  the  prices  of  1920  are 
roughly  double  those  of  191 5.  Furthermore,  wherever  possible, 
costs  are  expressed  in  terms  of  man  and  horse  hours  as  well  as 
dollars. 

Acknowledgment  is,  of  course,  due  the  Forest  Service  for  its 
courtesy  in  allowing  the  free  use  of  its  large  store  of  data. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 


Page 
I.  Northern  Spruce  Type i 

II.  Northern  Hardwood  Type i6 

III.   White  Pine  Tyte 29 

rv.  SwAitp  Ty-pe 


V.  Southeastern  Pine  Type. 


48 


52 


VI.  Southern  Bottomlands 61 

VII.  Southern  Hardwoods 71 

VIII.   Pinon-Juniper  Type 81 


IX.   Chapparal. 


84 


X.  Western  Yellow  Pine  Type 87 

XI.  Lodgepole  Pine  Type or 

XII.  Engelmann  Spruce  Type gp 

XIII.  Silver  Pine  Type 

XIV.  Sugar  Pine  Type 

XV.  Redwood  Type 122 

XVI.  Sequoia  Type 128 

XVII.  Douglas  Fir  Type 


104 

112 


XVIII.  Alaska. 


129 

138 

XIX.  Porto  Rico 148 

XX.  Philippines 1^2 

XXI.  Timber  Valuation 163 

XXII.  Land  Valuation 219 

XXIII.  Titles 230 

XXIV.  Outline  for  a  Report  on  a  Tract  of  Woodland 238 


CHAPTER  I 
NORTHERN  SPRUCE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  To  this  type  of  timberland  belong  the 
North  Woods  of  Maine,  the  upper  slopes  of  the  White  Mountains, 
the  higher  Green  Mountains,  the  summits  of  the  Adirondack  and 
Catskill  Mountains,  and  the  northern  swampy  parts  of  Michigan, 
Wisconsin  and  Minnesota.  Furthermore,  a  slender  string  of 
isolated  spruce-clad  peaks  extends  southward  along  the  backbone 
of  the  Appalachian  range  and  consequently  some  spruce  is  found 
in  Pennsylvania,  West  Virginia,  Virginia,  North  Carohna  and 
Tennessee.  The  distribution  of  the  type  is  shown  graphically 
on  the  accompanying  map. 

Thruout  its  range  spruce  is  most  abundant  in  a  cool,  moist 
climate  with  long  winters  and  heavy  precipitation.  Seldom  is 
the  growing  season  more  than  four  months  long  and  the  annual 
precipitation  must  be  at  least  40  inches  or  supplemented  by  slow 
drainage.  This  means  that  there  is  an  abundance  of  moisture 
available  for  tree  growth  because  the  long  winters  inhibit  runoff 
and  the  cool  summers  are  unfavorable  to  rapid  evaporation. 

These  climatic  conditions  only  occur  on  the  steeper  upper  slopes 
of  mountains  and  in  flat  swamp  land.  On  both  sites  the  soil  is 
shallow  but  the  spruce  is  well  able  to  make  the  most  of  the  scant 
foothold  with  its  flat,  widely  extended  root  system.  Likewise 
its  common  associates  are  trees  of  similar  habit  like  the  balsam, 
paper  birch  and  yellow  birch.  However,  by  reason  of  its  greater 
adaptability  to  such  untoward  conditions,  spruce  tends  to  crowd 
out  its  competitors  and  form  nearly  pure  stands  if  given  time 
enough.  Hence  the  subtypes  are  generally  transition  types 
caused  by  fire  or  cutting.  The  more  imporant  of  these  and  their 
composition  by  volume  and  number  are: 


*  *iBM  t  B«r 


NORTHERN   SPRUCE   TYPE 
COMPOSITION  OF  SUBTYPES  —  SPRUCE  TYPE 


Species 

Virgin  subtype 

Cutover  subtype 

Burn  subtype 

Number 

Volume 

Number 

Number 

Spruce 

Balsam 

Paper  Birch 

Pin  cherry 

Per  cent 

60 

30 
10 

Per  cent 
80 
10 
10 

Per  cent 
10 

15 
40 
35 

Per  cent 
10 
15 
30 

45 

100 

100 

100 

100 

The  virgin  subtype  varies  considerably  in  composition  with  the 
altitude.  At  the  upper  edge  of  merchantable  growth  there  is  a 
large  admixture  of  balsam,  while  at  the  lower  edge  where  it 
merges  into  the  hardwood  type  yellow  birch  and  paper  birch  are 
the  important  associate  species.  The  composition  percentages 
given  above  are  most  representative  of  conditions  in  the  middle 
of  the  altitudinal  range  of  the  type.  There  spruce  is  the  dom- 
inant species,  numerically  and  in  volume,  while  balsam,  paper 
birch  and  yellow  birch  are  merely  unimportant  associates.  An 
average  stand  is  loM  feet  B.  M.  per  acre  although  stands  of 
20  or  30M  are  not  uncommon.  In  the  virgin  subtype  little 
damage  is  the  rule,  not  because  there  are  no  serious  enemies  but 
for  the  reason  that  fire,  insects  and  wind  may  wipe  the  subtype 
out,  but  they  seldom  affect  it  in  a  moderate  degree.  It  is  a  case 
of  total  immunity  or  complete  destruction.  When  the  subtype 
is  dry  enough  to  burn  the  fire  usually  kills  the  young  trees, 
jumps  to  the  crowns  of  the  older  timber,  and  also  eats  up  the 
shallow  layer  of  soil.  In  the  same  way  wind  makes  wide  swaths 
or  throws  over  the  timber  on  entire  mountain  slopes  if  it  once 
gets  a  leverage  on  a  stand  of  spruce.  Likewise,  the  great 
insect  enemy  of  this  species,  the  spruce  beetle  {Dendrodonus 
piceaperda)  is  a  believer  in  no  halfway  measures.  Working  in 
large  colonies  it  systematically  kills  all  the  timber  that  comes 
in  its  way.  Fortunately  Httle  fungus  damage  occurs  in  this 
subtype. 

The  culled,  cutover  and  burned  subtypes  are  the  result  of 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS  3 

various  degrees  of  lumbering  and  neglect  on  the  virgin  subtype. 
The  culled  stands  are  few  for  two  reasons.  In  the  first  place 
even  the  early  logging  was  comparatively  clean  because  where  it 
paid  to  cut  the  spruce  on  the  upper  slopes  at  all  it  was  worth 
while  taking  nearly  all  the  stand  because  it  was  of  uniform  size. 
The  most  recent  logging  has,  of  course,  been  clean  because  the 
demand  for  pulpwood  furnished  a  market  for  all  material  down 
to  a  top  diameter  of  four  inches  inside  the  bark.  Furthermore  in 
cases  where  culling  has  been  attempted  in  the  virgin  spruce  sub- 
type much  blowdown  has  invariably  resulted  and  the  final  out- 
come been  identical  with  clean  cutting. 

The  cutover  subtype  is  then  the  most  common  where  the  logger 
has  reached  the  spruce  type.  Even  the  paper  birch  has  often 
been  cut  in  order  that  the  spruce  and  balsam  might  be  rolled  down 
over  it.  As  a  result  this  subtype  is  usually  completely  stripped 
of  its  standing  trees.  What  cannot  be  marketed  is  left  to  rot 
on  the  ground.  Fortunately,  however,  tree  growth  quickly 
reestablishes  itself  if  fire  is  kept  out.  First,  pin  cherry  and  paper 
birch  take  possession  of  the  ground  and  then  spruce  and  balsam 
come  up  under  their  shade.  If  given  time  enough  the  two  latter 
species  distance  the  two  first-named  short-hved  trees  and  the 
stand  becomes  nearly  pure  softwood.  Furthermore,  competition 
between  the  spruce  and  balsam  is  commonly  more  favorable  to 
the  former  because  of  its  greater  persistence.  The  balsam  is 
very  subject  to  heart  rot  —  Polyporus  schweinitzii  —  and  it  is 
rare  that  a  tree  over  15  inches  in  diameter  survives. 

The  restocking  of  the  burned  subt3^e  is  not  rapid  since  fire  is 
pecuHarly  destructive  in  the  spruce  type.  Usually  the  weather 
is  too  cool  and  moist  to  permit  fires  to  start  but  in  droughts  the 
thick  layer  of  humus  becomes  very  inflammable.  Especially  is 
this  the  case  where  logging  has  opened  up  the  stand  and  left 
debris.  Some  of  the  most  destructive  fires  in  the  unusually 
lurid  forest-fire  history  of  the  American  continent  have  been  in 
the  spruce  type.  Such  fires  are  combined  top  fires  and  ground 
fires.  Everything  is  consumed  and  only  the  bare  rocks  are  left. 
Examples  of  the  results  of  such  fires  are  furnished  by  the  bald 
summits  of  Monadnock,  Chocorua  and  Baldface  in  the  White 


4  NORTHERN  SPRUCE  TYPE 

Mountains  and  the  recently  cutover  and  burnt  slopes  of  Mt. 
Mitchell  in  North  Carolina. 


OPTIMUM  GROWTH  IN   loo  YEARS 


Diameter 

Height 

Density 

Yield  per  acre 

Inches 
lO 

II 

Feet 

Trees 

Board  feet 
7400 

Paper  birch 

5500 

This  table  shows  the  optimum  diameter  and  height  growth  for 
the  important  species  in  this  type  on  a  rotation  of  100  years.  The 
density  and  yield  per  acre  are  also  given.  From  these  it  is 
evident  that  the  short  growing  season  is  not  favorable  to  rapid 
diameter  and  height  growth  and  that  the  stands  per  acre  are 
only  heavy  by  reason  of  the  great  density  of  the  trees.  There  is 
a  marked  difference  between  the  northern  spruce  and  southern 
Appalachian  spruce.  The  latter  grows  faster  in  diameter  and 
height  but  the  trees  do  not  stand  so  close  together.  Generally 
speaking  the  most  profitable  rotation  for  this  type  is  at  least 
125  years. 

Timber  Valuation. —  There  are  several  factors  which  make 
estimating  in  the  spruce  type  comparatively  easy.  The  tracts 
are  usually  large  so  that  boundary  difhculties  are  not  serious. 
Furthermore,  the  stands  are  uniform,  the  species  few  and  damage 
slight.  On  the  other  hand  the  tracts  are  usually  inaccessible  so 
that  the  cost  of  subsisting  an  estimating  party  is  high.  Supplies 
frequently  have  to  be  brought  in  on  men's  backs  because  horses 
cannot  be  used  off  the  roads.  Even  these  are  in  many  cases 
impracticable  for  hauHng  except  when  covered  with  snow. 
Another  obstacle  to  cheap  work  is  the  roughness  of  the  mountain 
slopes  upon  which  the  spruce  grows  and  the  density  of  the  under- 
growth. As  a  consequence  an  average  day's  work  in  this  type 
is  24  strip  acres  —  i  chain  (66  feet)  wide  and  240  chains  long. 
However,  only  a  small  percentage  of  the  tract  need  be  actually 
covered  in  this  way.     Only  on  very  small  tracts  is  more  than  a 


TIMBER   VALUATION  5 

10  per  cent  estimate  necessary.  Ordinarily  5  to  10  per  cent  is 
sufficient  because  the  tracts  are  large  —  over  500  acres  —  and 
the  subtypes  uniform  in  composition  and  density. 

On  account  of  the  lack  of  roads  and  trails  it  is  frequently  diffi- 
cult to  find  a  suitable  place  for  a  base  line  from  which  to  run  the 
estimating  strips.  Usually,  however,  roads  or  trails  are  better 
than  survey  lines  because  they  are  easier  to  travel.  When 
selected  the  base  line  should  be  surveyed  and  stakes  set  at  equi- 
distant points,  measured  in  a  cardinal  direction  and  not  along 
the  base  line.  In  fact  the  distance  along  the  trail  used  may  be 
several  times  that  in  a  cardinal  direction  on  account  of  the  twists 
the  trail  makes  to  avoid  rough  going.  From  the  stakes  on  the 
base  line  the  estimate  strips  should  be  run  across  the  valleys, 
preferably  in  a  cardinal  direction.  The  object  in  running  them 
across  the  valleys  is  to  avoid  an  overestimate  by  getting  an  undue 
proportion  of  the  better  timber  in  the  valley  bottoms.  By  using 
a  cardinal  direction  possible  compass  errors  are  avoided  because 
it  is  much  easier  to  keep  the  line  straight  when  a  cardinal  direction 
is  used  than  when  the  lines  are  run  at  an  angle  less  than  90  degrees. 

This  strip  method  of  estimating  is,  of  course,  not  the  only  way 
to  determine  the  contents  of  a  stand.  It  is,  however,  generally 
considered  the  best  and  its  costs  may  fairly  be  considered  stand- 
ard. Obviously  an  experienced  local  estimator  does  not  need  to 
traverse  a  tract  as  carefully  as  one  unfamiliar  with  the  local 
conditions.  He  relies  on  his  judgment  more  because  he  has  had 
an  opportunity  to  check  it  by  the  results  of  local  logging.  But 
his  fees  are  based  on  the  cost  of  a  strip  survey. 

For  spruce  and  balsam  pulpwood  is  the  use  to  which  the 
smallest  timber  can  be  put  so  that  the  minimum  merchantable 
limits  for  these  species  are  determined  by  the  sizes  which  the 
pulp  mills  will  take.  The  present  minimum  standard  is  a  stick 
four  feet  long  and  at  least  four  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  end. 
Since  at  least  two  such  sticks  must  be  obtained  from  a  tree  to 
pay  for  felling,  trees  less  than  six  inches  in  diameter  breast-high 
are  considered  unmerchantable.  For  sawtimber  alone  the 
limits  are  higher.  At  least  six  inches  in  the  top  and  10  inches 
breast-high  are  the  usual  requirements.     Suitable  tables  giving 


6  NORTHERN   SPRUCE  TYPE 

the  volume  either  in  cubic  feet  or  board  feet  will  be  found  in 
Hawley  and  Hawes'  "JManual  of  Forestry,"  John  Wiley  and 
Sons,  Inc.,  New  York  City.  Only  tables  based  on  diameter 
breast-high  and  total  or  used  lengths  should  be  employed  because 
there  is  great  variation  in  the  height  of  both  spruce  and  balsam 
according  to  the  depth  of  the  soil. 

For  the  other  important  species  in  this  type,  paper  birch,  yel- 
low birch,  beech  and  sugar  maple,  volume  tables  will  also  be 
found  in  the  Manual  of  Forestry.  With  them  total  height  is  an 
unreliable  factor  and  only  usable  length  is  a  safe  indication  of 
their  merchantability.  This  may  be  estimated  in  either  i6  feet 
log  lengths  or  in  units  of  lo  feet  according  to  the  volum^  table 
and  the  way  in  which  it  is  worked  up. 

The  cost  of  estimating  spruce  tracts  is  determined  first  of  all 
by  the  percentage  of  the  stand  estimated.  As  explained  above 
this  need  seldom  be  more  than  lo  per  cent  on  account  of  the 
uniformity  of  the  stands.  The  second  factor,  roughness  of  topog- 
raphy, cuts  down  the  area  possible  for  a  crew  to  cover  in  a  day. 
However,  24  strip  acres  is  a  reasonable  average  day's  work. 
Hence  the  work  ought  not  to  cost  more  than  15  cents  an  acre 
and  can  frequently  be  done  for  half  that  figure.  This  should 
include  the  preparation  of  a  report  showing  the  amount,  quality 
and  value  of  the  timber,  the  way  in  which  it  can  be  logged  and 
a  contour  map  of  the  tract. 

Stumpage  Prices. —  Stumpage  prices  tend  to  approach  the 
difference  between  the  cost  of  logging  and  manufacture  and  the 
average  sale  value  of  the  lumber.  Fluctuations  in  these  factors 
are  not,  however,  reflected  at  once  in  the  stumpage  prices.  They 
are  inclined  to  drag  behind  the  increases  in  lumber  prices  and  be 
unaffected  by  declines.  This  is  well  brought  out  by  the  follow- 
ing figures  from  Compton's  "Organization  of  the  Lumber 
Industry": 

Average  Stumpage  Values  for  Spruce 

PerM 

1890         $1.74 

1899         2.26 

1904        3-7° 

1907        S-49 


STUMPAGE   PRICES  7 

Hence,  for  the  calculation  of  future  prices  such  figures  can  only 
be  used  as  a  check  and  guide.  The  costs  of  the  different  steps 
in  logging  and  manufacturing  must  be  known  for  each  tract  and 
the  sum  of  these  plus  a  margin  of  safety  deducted  from  the  aver- 
age sale  value.  This  requires  a  knowledge  of  the  methods  of 
lumbering  and  sawmilling  and  makes  necessary  their  description 
in  some  detail. 

On  account  of  the  inaccessibility  of  the  spruce  stands  logging 
Jobs  are  almost  invariably  carried  on  by  large  camps  located 
close  to  the  place  of  cutting  and  only  connected  with  the  outside 
world  by  a  slender  thread,  the  rough  tote  road.  Spruce  stands 
are  usually  in  mountainous  regions  where  farms  cannot  be  hewn 
out  of  the  wilderness.  Consequently  their  logging  is  no  job  for 
the  farmer's  spare  time.  If  he  does  it  at  all  he  must  go  back 
into  the  mountains,  build  a  camp  and  stay  with  the  job  with 
single-hearted  devotion.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  typical  opera- 
tion is  a  large  one  in  which  the  camps  house  30  to  60  men  and 
such  a  one  will  be  described  to  give  a  notion  of  the  methods 
employed. 

The  first  step  is  the  estimate  of  the  watershed  or  valleys  to  be 
logged  and  the  accumulation  of  sufficient  topographic  data  to 
determine  where  the  main  roads  must  go,  whether  driving  can  be 
employed  and  the  approximate  cost  of  logging.  This  information 
should  be  secured  by  the  estimators.  The  figures  given  above 
for  the  cost  of  estimating  contemplate  a  report  which  should  cover 
the  following  points :  — ■ 

Amount  of  timber  by  logging  units. 

Quality  of  timber  by  logging  units. 

Topographic  data  (preferably  in  the  form  of  a  contour  map). 

Logging  costs  by  principal  watersheds. 

Method  of  sawmilling  and  estimate  of  cost. 

Estimated  sale  value  of  finished  product. 

Such  a  report  enables  a  lumber  company  to  plan  its  own  opera- 
tions inteUigently  or  let  contracts  with  exactness.  The  latter 
method  is  more  common  in  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont 
and  New  York  because  there  are  many  jobbers  who  possess  great 


8  NORTHERN   SPRUCE  TYPE 

skill  in  this  work.  In  fact  they  are  generally  able  to  log  more 
cheaply  than  the  lumber  companies  themselves  because  their 
supervision  is  closer,  their  overhead  expenses  are  small,  they 
make  scant  allowance  for  depreciation  or  interest  on  investment 
and  are  content  with  small  returns  per  thousand  feet.  In  the 
southern  spruce  regions  conditions  are  different.  Seldom  have 
the  local  inhabitants  acquired  the  experience  necessary  to  con- 
tract for  themselves  so  that  the  lumber  companies  are  forced  to 
run  their  own  camps.  For  simplicity's  sake  a  contract  job  in  the 
Maine  woods  will  be  taken  as  the  type  and  after  it  has  been 
described  local  variations  in  other  parts  of  the  country  pointed  out. 
Assume  then  that  Bill  Jones  contracted  in  1914  to  yard  on  the 
river  bank  of  the  nearest  drivable  stream  two  million  feet  of  spruce 
and  balsam.  Since  the  haul  from  the  stump  to  the  yard  was 
only  four  miles  he  agreed  to  do  it  for  $5  per  M.  He  needed  a  crew 
of  60  men  and  started  felling  by  October  i  in  order  to  get  the 
timber  down  and  skidded  before  the  deep  snows  came.  For  his 
labor  he  hired  his  neighbors  as  far  as  possible  and  then  filled  in 
with  French  Canadians  who  came  south  for  the  winter  after  the 
Canadian  harvest  had  been  garnered.  A  picked  crew  of  choppers 
was  first  sent  into  the  woods  to  build  camps  and  clean  out  the 
roads.  Then  the  main  crew  came  in.  It  was  divided  up  into 
choppers,  teamsters  for  the  skidding  teams,  tote  teamsters,  barn 
tenders,  a  cook  and  cookees,  a  blacksmith,  a  scaler,  camp  clerk. 

The  first  job  was  to  fell  the  timber  and  bunch  it  up  for  hauling 
on  two  sleds.  The  methods  employed  varied  with  the  steepness 
of  the  ground.  On  level  and  moderate  slopes  ordinary  skidding 
practices  were  followed.  A  single  horse  or  a  pair  bunched  the 
logs  on  to  skidways  from  which  they  could  be  rolled  onto  two 
sleds.  On  steep  ground  the  procedure  was  different.  Two 
sleds  could  not  be  used  to  advantage.  The  only  safe  way  was 
to  drag  the  log  out  on  a  single  bobsled  with  only  one  end  of  the 
logs  up.  Bare  ground  was  preferable  to  snow  because  slower  and 
hence  safer.  Furthermore,  the  spruce  commonly  stood  so 
densely  on  such  steep  slopes  that  it  was  easy  to  make  up  a  bob- 
sled load  by  merely  rolUng  the  logs  onto  the  sled  without  any 
preliminary  bunching.     In  fact  in  many  places  the  timber  was 


STUMPAGE   PRICES  9 

felled  into  the  roads  which  were  not  more  than  loo  feet  apart 
so  that  the  horses  did  not  need  to  get  out  of  the  road.  For  exam- 
ple, on  the  Henry  operations  in  the  White  Mountains  and  the 
Perley  and  Crockett  job  in  North  Carolina  two  sleds  were  not 
used  at  all.  A  single  bobsled  brought  the  logs  off  the  mountain- 
side directly  to  the  railroad.  On  less  steep  ground,  however,  the 
two-sled  is  the  standard  method  of  getting  the  logs  from  the 
skid  ways  to  the  railroad,  drivable  streams  or  mill.  This  sledding 
can,  of  course,  only  be  done  after  there  is  plenty  of  snow.  Hence 
the  usual  practice  in  the  North  Woods  is  to  complete  the  felling 
operations  by  Christmas  if  possible  and  then  put  in  January  and 
February  hauling.  This  gets  the  logs  out  of  the  woods  before 
the  river  opens  in  the  spring  and  ready  for  the  drive  in  March 
and  April. 
The  following  figures  were  average  costs,  in  191 5  : 

PerM 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  50 

Skidding 2 .  00 

Hauling  to  railway  or  river,  2  miles 2 .  cx> 

Drive  or  railway  haul  to  mill,  distance  10  miles i  .00 

$6.50 
Felling  costs  are  relatively  high  because  the  timber  is  small  and 
usually  found  on  rough  ground.  Skidding  is  shown  as  a  separate 
cost  altho  as  explained  above  it  is  frequently  merged  into  the 
hauling  as  a  single  operation  of  "  yarding."  A  charge  for  two- 
sledding  to  the  railway  or  drivable  stream  is  included  to  make 
the  estimate  conservative  although  sometimes  it  is  possible  to 
yard  directly  into  the  drivable  stream  or  railway  with  a  bobsled. 
Likewise,  the  distance  taken  for  the  railway  haul  or  drive  is  rather 
longer  than  the  average  to  avoid  the  possibility  of  having  costs 
which  are  too  low. 

Expressed  in  terms  of  man  hours  and  horse  hours  per  M  these 
costs  would  be  as  follows : 

Man  hours  Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 3 

Skidding 3  4 

Hauling,  2  miles 5  7 

Driving  or  railway  haul,  10  miles 4 

Total ic  TT 


lO  NORTHERN   SPRUCE  TYPE 

To  attain  these  figures  the  felling  crew  must  cut  6M  per  day  if 
composed  of  two  men  and  9M  if  there  are  three  men.  In 
skidding  this  assumes  that  one  team  will  bunch  at  least  5M  board 
feet  per  day.  The  hauling  costs  are  on  the  basis  of  a  daily  output 
of  3M  board  feet  or  five  round  trips  hauling  between  500  and 
600  board  feet  each  time.  The  driving  and  railway  haul  costs 
cannot  be  expressed  conveniently  in  terms  of  a  day's  work  but 
the  figures  given  are  at  least  conservative.  In  all  the  operations 
except  hauHng  by  railroad  the  labor  costs  constitute  80  to  90  per 
cent  of  the  entire  charge.  On  account  of  the  large  amount 
invested  in  rolHng  stock  the  labor  costs  are  but  40  per  cent  of  the 
cost  of  operating  a  railroad. 

For  pulpwood  there  is  a  well  established  market  in  the  log  form 
so  that  it  need  not  be  followed  further  than  the  mill.  Prices 
ranged  before  the  War  from  $7  to  $10  per  cord  unpeeled.  Peeling 
usually  increased  the  price  a  dollar  a  cord.  For  converting  board 
feet  into  cords  a  factor  of  500  board  feet  is  safe  or  in  other  words 
there  will  be  found  to  be  about  two  cords  of  pulpwood  in  a  thou- 
sand feet  of  logs.  Accessibility  is  the  main  factor  in  pulpwood 
values.  New  York  State  with  a  shorter  freight  haul  for  its  paper 
pays  better  prices  for  pulpwood  than  New  Hampshire  or  Maine. 

Spruce  destined  for  sawtimber  cannot  be  safely  valued  in  the 
log  but  must  be  carried  thru  the  sawmill.  Then  its  value  becomes 
a  simple  matter  because  eastern  spruce  is  well  graded  with  Boston 
and  New  York  as  the  principal  wholesale  markets.  Milling 
charges  added  approximately  $3  per  M  to  the  costs  of  logging  so 
that  exclusive  of  stumpage  spruce  lumber  should  not  have  cost 
above  $10  per  M  to  get  ready  for  the  market.  The  prices  paid 
in  October,  1916,  at  Boston  for  the  principal  grades  of  spruce 
were  as  follows: 

PerM 

Frames  8  inches  and  under $28 .  00 

Random 22 .  50 

Cover  boards 20 .  50 

The  average  price,  however,  was  seldom  over  $25  per  M  because 
it  was  unusual  to  get  more  than  40  per  cent  of  frames.  A  dia- 
gram showing  the  recent  changes  in  spruce  lumber  prices  is  given 
in  Fig.  3. 


STUMPAGE   PRICES 


II 


Yellow  pine 


10,845,000,000  bd.  ft. 


Douglas  fir 


White  pine 


Oak 


Hemlock 


Western  yellow  pine 

Maple 

Gum 

Cypress 

Redwood 

Chestnut 

Birch 

Larch 

Beech 

Yellow  poplar 

Cedar 

Tupelo 

White  fir 

Basswood 

Elm 

Cottonwood 

Ash 

Sugar  pine 

Hickory 

Walnut 

Balsam  fir 

Sj'camore 

Lodgepole  pine 

All  other  kinds 

Grand  total 


5,620,000,000 

2,200,000,000 

2,025,000,000 

1,875,000,000 

1,710,000,000 

1,125,000,000 

815,000,000 

765,000,000 

630,000,000 

443,000,000 

400,000,000 

370,000,000 

355,000,000 

290,000,000 

290,000,000 

245,000,000 

237,000,000 

213,000,000 

200,000,000 

195,000,000 

175,000,000 

170,000,000 

111,000,000 

100,000,000 

100,000,000 

82,000,000 

30,000,000 

12,000,000 

60,000,000 

31,890,000,000 


Lumber 
Computed  by  U.  S. 


Fig.  I 
Production,  1918 
Forest  Service.     Bulletin  845. 


12  NORTHERN   SPRUCE   TYPE 

As  stated  above  the  stumpage  price  of  any  tract  should  be  the 
difference  between  the  average  sale  value  of  its  timber  and  all 
costs  of  logging,  manufacture  and  selling.     On  small  jobs  such 


Fig.  2.     Distribution  of  the  Northern  Spruce  Tpye 


calculations  are  simple  but  where  large  initial  investments  are 
necessary  for  railroads,  roads,  driving  improvements,  mill 
machinery,  etc.,  the  problem  is  exceedingly  complex  because  the 


LAND   VALUES  13 

exact  influence  of  interest  and  depreciation  must  be  determined. 
The  most  complete  discussion  of  this  subject  is  to  be  found  in 
the  U.  S.  Forest  Service  Stumpage  Appraisal  Manual.  For  our 
purposes  it  is  sufficient  to  state  the  principles  involved.  Actual 
stumpage  values  for  spruce  and  balsam  range  all  the  way  from 
$2  to  $8  per  M  according  to  the  accessibihty  of  the  tract  in  ques- 
tion. Between  1900  and  1907  there  was  an  increase  from  $2.26 
to  $5.49  per  M,  or  a  rise  of  143  per  cent.  The  percentage  of  bal- 
sam also  influences  the  stumpage  price  of  a  tract.  Fortunately, 
however,  this  inferior  species  seldom  makes  up  more  than  25  per 
cent  of  the  total  stand  except  in  immature  stands  only  large 
enough  for  pulpwood.  It  is  a  relatively  short-lived  tree  which 
has  to  yield  in  the  long  run  to  spruce.  Consequently  there  is 
seldom  enough  to  greatly  depress  the  value  of  a  tract. 

Land  Values. —  Land  values  in  this  type  are  impossible  to 
determine  from  current  sales  because  the  timber  is  never  sold 
separately.  However,  members  of  the  New  Hampshire  Timber- 
land  Owners'  Association  have  agreed  to  the  taxation  of  their 
clean-cut  lands  at  $2  per  acre  so  that  that  figure  may  be  used  as 
a  minimum  valuation.  From  the  productive  aspect  it  is  easy 
to  show  that  spruce  land  is  worth  at  least  $3  an  acre  using  a  3  per 
cent  interest  rate  and  assuming  that  there  \vill  be  a  yield  of  15M 
feet  in  100  years  worth  $150  an  acre.  Losses  from  insects,  fungi, 
etc.,  will  be  offset  by  possible  intermediate  yields  from  thinnings. 

Very  little  of  the  soil  in  the  spruce  type  has  any  value  for 
agriculture.  Even  as  pasture  in  the  Southern  Appalachians  it  is 
not  a  success.  The  soil  is  so  thin  and  the  slopes  so  sharp  that 
grass  takes  hold  very  slowly  and  cannot  prevent  washing.  Fur- 
thermore, the  climate  is  so  rigorous  that  only  the  hardiest  north- 
ern crops  can  survive.  However,  arguments  and  illustrations  of 
this  kind  are  superfluous.  The  facts  prove  the  case.  Scarcely 
I  per  cent  of  the  entire  type,  north  or  south,  has  ever  been  cleared 
up  for  either  tillage  or  pasture  in  spite  of  the  keen  demand  for 
agricultural  land  that  there  has  been  in  the  northeast  and  south- 
east. 

Titles. —  Title  questions  are  relatively  simple  because  the  tracts 
involved  have  usually  been  handled  in  large  units.     There  have 


H 


NORTHERN  SPRUCE  TYPE 


commonly  been  grants  of  thousands  of  acres  issued  to  one  paten- 
tee. Hence  their  history  is  easy  to  trace.  Claims  of  title  are, 
however,  sometimes  obscure  from  the  fact  that  the  tracts  of 


.$65   PER  M 


$25    PER  M   BOARD   FEgT 


1910        1911      1912       1913       1914      1915       1916       1917       1918       1919      1920 

Fig.  3.     Wholesale  Prices  of  Spruce  Frames,  1910-1920,  Boston.  Mass. 

mountain  land  upon  which  spruce  grows  have  only  recently  had 
a  merchantable  value  and  their  early  owners  were  lax  in  recording 
transfers  and  alienation?.  Breaks  in  the  chain  of  title  are  not 
uncommon  either  due  to  simple  failure  to  record  sales  and 


LAND   VALUES  I^ 

bequests,  thru  the  unperfecting  of  the  clauns  of  minor  heirs,  or 
because  of  unliquidated  liens.  Squatters  also  form  another 
frequent  source  of  annoyance.  In  many  cases  they  have  been 
allowed  to  use  unmolested  parts  of  large  tracts  for  such  long 
periods  that  they  have  acquired  rights  of  possession. 


CHAPTER  II 
NORTHERN   HARDWOOD   TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  This  is  the  type  of  timber  which  lies 
immediately  below  the  spruce  type  —  the  beech,  birch  and  maple 
belt.  It  is  seldom  abundant  above  3000  feet  above  sea  level  but 
is  the  important  type  in  northern  Maine,  the  lower  slopes  of  the 
White  and  Green  Mountains,  the  Adirondacks  and  Catskills, 
and  is  represented  southward  along  the  backbone  of  the  southern 
Appalachians  by  isolated  islands  of  timber.  In  the  Lake  States 
it  is  found  in  Michigan,  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota. 

The  cUmate  is  characterized  by  a  longer  growing  season  than 
that  of  the  spruce  type,  less  precipitation,  more  rapid  runoff  and 
flyoff  and  hence  less  available  moisture.  Only  two  of  these  cli- 
matic factors  may  be  expressed  absolutely.  The  growing  season 
is  at  least  four  months  and  the  total  annual  precipitation  exceeds 
35  inches.  The  other  factors  have  not  yet  been  accurately 
measured  so  that  only  comparative  statements  may  be  made. 

Since  the  type  occupies  lower  elevations  than  the  spruce  type 
the  slopes  are  less  precipitous,  the  surface  less  stony  and  the  soil 
deeper.  The  absolute  range  in  elevation  varies,  of  course,  with 
the  latitude.  In  the  northeast  a  range  between  2000  and  3000 
feet  in  elevation  is  the  rule,  while  in  North  Carohna  the  northern 
hardwoods  do  not  occur  below  3000  feet  above  sea  level.  On 
south  and  west  exposures  the  type  does  not  extend  so  low  but 
reaches  higher  elevations  on  account  of  the  longer  growing  season 
as  compared  with  northern  and  eastern  exposures. 

The  greater  depth  of  the  soil  as  compared  with  that  of  the 
spruce  type  has  already  been  mentioned.  This  would  naturally 
follow  from  the  fact  that  the  hardwoods  are  further  down  the 
slopes  where  the  accumulation  of  talus  is  deeper.  They  flourish 
particularly  well  on  the  southern  slopes  of  the  White  and  Green 
Mountains,  the  Adirondacks  and  the  Catskills  where  the  glaciers 

16 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


17 


have  dumped  piles  of  detritus  scraped  off  from  the  northern  slopes 
of  the  mountains.  The  composition  of  the  soil  varies  with  the 
geological  history  of  the  region.     In  the  north  it  is  of  glacial 


Fig.  4.     Distribution  of  the  Northern  Hardwood  and  White  Pine  Types 


origin,  usually  a  loam  with  many  boulders.  South  of  the  con- 
tinental terminal  moraine  the  soil  is  mainly  derived  from  the 
decomposition  of  the  underlying  rock.     But  whatever  its  origin 


1 8  NORTHERN   HARDWOOD   TYPE 

it  tends  to  become  a  rich,  dark  loam  by  the  disintegration  of  the 
abundant  leaf  litter. 

While  beech,  yellow  birch  and  sugar  maple  are  the  character- 
istic species  in  this  type  there  is  always  a  generous  admixture  of 
other  species.  On  the  lower  edges  of  the  type  white  pine,  hem- 
lock, black  birch,  basswood,  red  oak,  and  even  occasionally  white 
oak  are  part  of  the  mixture  while  at  the  upper  margin  spruce, 
balsam  and  paper  birch  are  the  supplementary  species.  It  is 
seldom,  indeed,  that  this  type  does  not  have  a  considerable  per- 
centage of  softwood  timber.  In  fact  it  is  here  that  white  pine 
and  spruce  reach  their  best  development.  For  example,  while 
the  sand  plains  of  northern  Michigan  produce  the  dense  stands 
of  pure  white  pine  the  largest,  tallest  and  straightest  individuals 
grew  amongst  the  hardwoods. 

A  variety  of  subtypes  may  be  distinguished  in  this  type.  In 
the  first  place  there  are  the  variations  due  to  composition.  These 
are  mainly  the  results  of  differences  in  elevation.  For  example, 
a  mixture  of  white  pine  and  hardwoods  is  not  common  higher 
than  2000  feet  above  sea  level  because  white  pine  does  not  flourish 
at  a  greater  elevation.  The  distribution  of  spruce  is  governed 
by  the  same  factor,  it  being  unable  to  compete  successfully  with 
other  species  at  elevations  less  than  2000  feet  above  sea  level 
except  occasionally  on  old  fields.  A  few  of  the  more  usual  com- 
binations which  it  is  useful  to  distinguish  as  subtypes  on  account 
of  their  composition  are: 

Hardwoods  and  white  pine. 
Pure  hardwoods. 
Hardwoods  and  spruce. 

These  are  arranged  in  order  of  their  occurrence  starting  with  the 
lower  limits  of  the  type. 

Besides  the  differences  in  composition  due  to  elevation,  lumber- 
ing, clearing,  and  fire  have  also  played  an  important  role.  Stands 
may  be  virgin,  culled,  cutover,  or  burnt.  Each  has  a  different 
composition.  CulUng  has  been  the  commonest  form  of  lumbering 
because  in  many  places  only  the  softwoods  have  been  merchant- 
able.    This  has  naturally  resulted  in  increasing  the  percentage 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


IQ 


of  the  hardwoods  in  a  marked  degree.  The  composition  of  the 
cutover  and  burned  subtypes  except  where  the  soil  has  been 
entirely  consumed  tend  to  be  identical.  Commonly  such  intoler- 
ant, light  seeded  species  as  popple,  pin  cherry  and  paper  birch 
take  possession  of  the  ground.  Then  when  they  have  reached  a 
height  of  lo  or  15  feet  the  more  tolerant  hardwoods  and  spruce 
and  balsam  work  in  underneath.  Occasionally,  however,  dense 
groups  of  hard  maple  crowd  out  the  other  species,  especially 
where  the  maples  have  been  cut  and  regenerate  from  sprouts. 

A  not  infrequent  variation  in  the  older  parts  of  New  England 
is  the  old  field  spruce  subtype.  This  is  90  per  cent  or  more  pure 
spruce  in  composition  and  is  always  found  on  old  pasture.  The 
grazing  kept  the  hardwoods  out  while  the  seed  bed  conditions 
were  favorable  for  spruce. 

Fortunately  damage  is  relatively  sUght  in  this  type.  None 
of  the  subtypes  are  as  subject  to  burning  as  stands  with  a  higher 
percentage  of  softwoods.  Wind  seldom  succeeds  in  overthrow- 
ing the  mixture  of  deep  rooted  species.  Game,  insects  and  fungi 
never  cause  the  death  of  trees  over  wide  areas  because  the  stands 
are  not  made  up  of  one  species.  In  other  words  their  food  supply 
is  too  scattered,  for  usually  but  one  kind  of  tree  is  attacked. 

The  following  table  gives  data  on  the  growth  of  the  principal 
species  of  the  hardwood  type  from  the  researches  of  the  U.  S. 
Forest  Service  and  the  State  Forester  of  Vermont: 


OPTIMUM   IN   100  YEARS 


Species 


Height 


Density 
per  acre 


Yield  per  acre 


Spruce 

Hard  maple 

Aspen 

Yellow  birch 

Vermont  hardwoods 


300 
"60' 
275 


Cubic  feet 
10,000 

13,000 

7,000 


Timber  Valuation. —  Estimating  within  the  hardwood  type  is  a 
compUcated  problem.  While  the  tracts  are  usually  located  on 
the  lower  slopes  of  the  mountains,  and  hence  the  going  is  not 


20  NORTHERN  HARDWOOD   TYPE 

rough  and  roads  not  far  distant,  there  are  the  following  difficul- 
ties to  be  overcome: 

1.  Small  size  of  the  tracts. 

2.  Great  variation  in  composition  of  subtypes. 

3.  Large  number  of  species  with  varying  uses  so  that  dif- 

ferent diameter  limits  must  be  employed  in  estimating. 

4.  Low  branching  habit  of  hardwoods  so  that  the  usable 

length  is  very  variable. 

It  is  unfair  to  generalize  and  say  that  all  tracts  in  this  type  are 
small,  but  certainly  they  average  less  in  acreage  than  tracts  in 
the  spruce  type.  The  very  good  reason  for  this  is  that  the  hard- 
woods occur  on  the  lower  slopes  near  the  farmland  and  hence 
were  more  desirable  as  woodlots  in  the  early  days.  Then  too 
the  prime  use  of  a  woodlot  50  years  ago  was  for  firewood,  and 
softwoods  don't  make  first  class  fuel.  These  two  factors  of 
greater  accessibihty  and  higher-use  value  led  to  the  early  sub- 
division of  the  hardwood  type  into  lots  of  50  acres  or  more. 
Seldom  is  it  possible  to  find  a  tract  composed  of  units  of  more 
than  100  acres  to  the  lot.  Large  grants  of  500  or  1000  acres 
such  as  are  the  rule  in  the  spruce  type  never  occur.  This  factor 
of  area  is  merely  one  of  the  reasons  why  a  relatively  large  per- 
centage must  be  covered  in  the  estimating  strips  because  a  low 
percentage  of  a  large  tract  will  give  as  good  an  average  as  a 
much  greater  proportion  of  a  small  tract. 

Still  another  reason  for  running  the  strips  close  together  is  the 
great  variabiKty  in  composition.  There  may  be  a  small  pocket 
of  white  ash  in  one  corner  of  the  tract  which  will  greatly  inhance 
its  value  but  which  would  not  be  discovered  unless  an  unusually 
careful  search  were  made.  Other  valuable  species  tend  to  occur 
in  small  groups  also  so  that  nothing  less  than  a  10  per  cent  esti- 
mate is  safe  even  for  tracts  of  500  acres  or  more.  With  smaller 
blocks  an  even  higher  proportion  is  necessary.  For  example, 
at  least  50  per  cent  should  be  actually  measured  if  a  true  estimate 
of  a  10  acre  lot  is  to  be  secured. 

The  placing  of  the  base  line  and  the  planning  of  the  strip  work 
present  no  unusual  difficulties  but  follow  the  principles  outlined 


TIMBER   VALUATION  21 

in  the  discussion  of  the  spruce  type.  There  are,  however,  a  series 
of  special  problems  in  the  determination  of  the  diameter  Hmits 
to  be  used  in  estimating.  Each  species  has  its  own  pecuHar  uses 
and  hence  there  is  wide  variation  in  the  part  of  the  tree  which  is 
merchantable. 

The  principal  uses  of  the  species  found  in  the  hardwood  type 
are  as  follows: 

White  pine  —  doors,  sash,  finishing  lumber,  and  boxboards. 

Hemlock  —  dimension  lumber,  rough  finish,  pulp  and  box- 
boards. 

Spruce  —  dimension  lumber  and  pulp. 

Balsam  —  pulp. 

Paper  birch  —  shoe  pegs,  toothpicks,  spools  and  bobbins. 

Yellow  birch  —  flooring,  spools,  bobbins  and  interior  finish. 

Black  birch  —  flooring,  spools,  bobbins  and  interior  finish. 

Beech  —  flooring,  spools,  bobbins  and  interior  finish. 

Chestnut  —  rough  finish,  caskets,  poles,  railway  ties. 

Red  oak  —  furniture,  car  stock,  and  railway  ties. 

White  oak  —  furniture,  car  stock,  and  railway  ties. 

Hard  maple  —  flooring,  bobbins,  spools,  furniture,  and  shoe 
lasts. 

Soft  maple  —  flooring  and  bobbins. 

Basswood  —  boxes,  trunks,  furniture  backing  and  novelties. 

White  ash  —  handles  and  sporting  goods. 

The  uses  and  diameter  limits  for  spruce  and  balsam  have 
already  been  discussed.  White  pine  and  hemlock  are  also  sal- 
able for  pulp  so  that  the  same  minimum  diameters  hold  altho 
these  species  usually  find  a  better  market  if  sawn  into  boxboards 
or  square-edged  lumber.  If  they  are  to  be  sold  in  the  latter  form 
a  minimum  diameter  of  ten  inches  breast-high  and  a  top  diameter 
of  five  inches  will  include  all  the  merchantable  timber.  Barring 
certain  ^special  uses  the  hardwoods  may  be  grouped  into  two 
classes,  those  manufactured  into  boards  and  those  sold  by  cubic 
measure.  Into  the  first  class  fall  the  maple,  birch  and  beech 
which  go  into  flooring  and  finishing  lumber  while  the  second  class 
includes  paper  birch  to  be  used  for  toothpicks  and  shoe  pegs. 


NORTHERN  HARDWOOD   TYPE 


yellow  and  paper  birch,  beech  and  maple  for  manufacture  into 
spools,  bobbins  or  dowels.  Naturally  this  latter  class  can  utilize 
smaller  sizes.  The  minimum  estimating  diameters  for  the  dif- 
ferent species  found  in  this  type  are  as  follows: 

MINIMUM   DIAMETERS 
Lumber 


Species 


Hemlock 

White  pine 

Spruce 

Balsam 

Paper  birch 

Yellow  birch 

Black  birch 

Beech 

Chestnut 

Red  oak 

White  oak 

Hard  maple 

Red  maple 

Silver  maple 

Basswood 

White  ash 

Cordwood  —  all  species 


Breast-high 


Top 


Obviously  then  the  first  step  in  planning  the  estimate  of  a  tract 
is  to  find  out  to  what  uses  the  various  species  can  best  be  put. 
This  is  in  the  main  determined  by  the  local  industries.  Hardwood 
logs  are  so  heavy  that  they  cannot  be  hauled  long  distances.  As 
a  consequence  it  often  happens  that  a  tract  may  have  maple 
admirably  suited  for  flooring  but  the  absence  of  a  planing  mill 
makes  it  impossible  to  consider  any  other  use  than  fuelwood. 

Volume  tables  exist  for  all  the  important  species  in  this  type  — 
see  Graves'  "Mensuration"  and  Hawley  and  Hawes'  "Manual  of 
Forestry."  While  it  may  be  permissible  to  use  a  table  based  on 
total  height  for  softwoods,  merchantable  length  is  the  only  safe 
factor  for  hardwoods.  There  are  two  reasons  for  this.  In  the 
first  place  there  is  great  variation  in  the  usable  lengths  of  hard- 
woods on  account  of  the  size  of  the  branches.  The  straight  main 
trunk  and  small  side  branches  of  a  conifer  are  entirely  different. 
With  the  latter  it  is  entirely  possible  to  get  a  reasonably  close 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


23 


estimate  with  a  table  based  on  total  height  and  using  a  general 
average  for  the  top  diameter.  But  with  hardwoods  the  top  diam- 
eter may  vary  100  per  cent  or  more  depending  upon  size  and 
location  of  the  side  limbs.  The  second  reason  why  usable  length 
is  much  safer  is  that  hardwoods  are  more  subject  to  fungus  dis- 
orders than  softwoods  especially  where  ground  fires  have  been 
frequent  or  the  limbs  have  been  broken  off  by  the  wind.  This 
means  that  a  log  length  or  two  must  be  discarded  in  an  otherwise 
sound  tree  on  account  of  rot.  With  a  log  length  table  this  is 
possible  whereas  a  total  height  table  does  not  have  the  same  flex- 
ibility. 

Summing  up,  then,  the  difficulties  and  favorable  factors  that 
are  encountered  in  estimating  in  this  type,  the  accessibility  and 
easy  slopes  make  for  quick  work  while  the  small  size  of  the  tracts, 
the  varying  composition,  and  the  high  percentage  of  defect 
amongst  the  hardwoods  increase  costs.  An  average  of  20  strip 
acres  per  day  for  a  crew  of  two  men  is  good  and  the  cost  per  acre 
can  seldom  be  kept  below  10  cents.  Fifteen  cents  may  be  neces- 
sary if  the  tracts  are  small. 

The  general  principles  which  determine  stumpage  prices  have 
been  explained  in  the  discussion  of  the  spruce  type  so  that  it  is 
only  necessary  to  enumerate  the  main  facts  with  regard  to  prices 
in  the  hardwood  type. 

The  best  collection  of  average  stumpage  prices  by  regions  and 
states  is  that  published  by  the  Forest  Service  in  Bulletin  285, 
The  Northern  Hardwood  Forest.  The  most  important  are  repro- 
duced here: 


COMPARATIVE  STUMPAGE   PRICES  FROM   REPORTS  OF  SALES 
1912 


N.  E.  States 

Lake  States 

8.  E.  States 

Birch 

5. 61 
4.38 

5  98 
8.40 
9  03 

4.85 
367 

4.58 

3.33 

Beech 

Elm 

Hard  maple 

3-45 
4.92 
6  16 

Basswood .       ... 

Ash 

24 


NORTHERN  HARDWOOD   TYPE 


Altho  compiled  from  records  of  actual  sales  kept  by  the  Office  of 
Industrial  Investigation  they  cannot  be  taken  as  average  figures 
for  the  regions  referred  to  because  they  apply  to  only  the  most 
accessible  timber.  Inaccessible  timber  would  not  be  sold.  As  a 
whole,  then,  they  are  higher  than  can  be  expected  on  the  average. 
Furthermore  there  is  considerable  variation  within  the  groups 
of  states  cited.  Among  the  northeastern  timbered  states  New 
York  and  Pennsylvania  record  the  highest  stumpage,  as  might 
naturally  be  expected  from  their  advanced  industrial  develop- 
ment. However,  Ohio  and  Indiana  have  still  higher  prices  but 
they  are  essentially  agricultural  states  with  very  little  true  forest 
soil.  In  the  Great  Lake  region  Michigan  with  its  large  manu- 
facturing interests  shows  the  highest  stumpage  prices.  For  the 
same  reason  Maryland  leads  among  the  states  of  the  southeast. 
The  following  table  shows  for  each  of  the  important  hardwood 
species  the  maximum  and  minimum  prices  recorded  in  191 2  with 
the  state  in  which  they  occur. 

MAXIMUM  AND  MINIMUM  STUMPAGE  PRICES 
1912 


Species 

Maximum  price 

Minimum  price 

Maple 

Birch 

Beech 

Basswood 

Elm 

Ash 

PerM 
$7.94  Indiana 

6.14  New  York 

6.15  Ohio 
II  .59  Ohio 

9.43  Ohio 
15.87  Ohio 

PerM 
$2.70  Virginia 
2.31  Tennessee 
1.83  W.  Virginia 
3.30  N.  Carolina 
2.67  Virginia 
3.85  W.  Virginia 

It  is  evident  that  maple  commands  the  best  price  in  the  north 
central  states  where  the  nearness  to  market,  small  supply,  and 
high  quality  all  combine  to  increase  the  stumpage  price.  Both 
Ohio  and  Indiana  are  primarily  agricultural  and  manufacturing 
states  so  that  what  little  timber  is  left  would  naturally  be  valuable 
and  in  addition  the  finest  quality  of  maple  grows  in  deep,  agri- 
cultural soil  such  as  occurs  in  these  states.  Of  the  northeastern 
states  New  York  reports  the  highest  prices  and  Vermont  the 
lowest  but  there  is  only  a  range  of  $1.72  or  40  per  cent.     In  the 


mwnwnnT  rnUMVT 


TIMBER   VALUATION  25 

Lake  States  stumpage  prices  vary  from  $9.86  to  $3.48  or  a  dif- 
ference of  $6.38  or  180  per  cent.  The  southern  Appalachian 
states  show  a  variation  of  $2.61  or  96  per  cent  with  a  minimimi 
of  $2.70  in  Virginia  and  a  maximum  of  $5.3 1  in  Maryland.  These 
prices  are,  however,  of  little  value  in  arriving  at  a  definite  notion 
of  the  average  value  of  maple  stumpage  unless  accompanied  by 
statistics  showing  the  distribution  of  the  standing  timber.  For 
example,  while  the  stumpage  prices  in  Indiana  are  high  there  is 
so  little  timber  that  the  effect  upon  the  general  level  is  negligible. 
Frothingham's  estimate  of  the  total  amount  of  stumpage  shows 
that  the  northeastern  and  Lake  States  contain  87  per  cent  of  the 
total  stand.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  hardwood  type  is  relatively 
unimportant  in  other  parts  of  the  country. 

Since  these  figures  are  of  little  value  in  determining  the  stump- 
age price  on  any  particular  tract  it  is  necessary  to  supplement 
them  by  logging  costs  and  average  selling  prices.  Average  costs 
of  logging  were  as  follows  in  1915: 

PerM 

Felling $2 .  50 

Skidding 3 .  00 

Hauling  to  mill,  3  miles 4 .  00 

Milling 4 .  00 

1350 

These  costs  are  naturally  higher  than  for  softwoods  because 
hardwoods  are  heavier,  crooked  and  generally  more  difficult  to 
handle.  Even  at  the  sawmill  they  cost  more  on  account  of  their 
hardness.  Their  proper  seasoning  is  also  more  difficult  since 
they  require  closer  sticking  and  more  protection  from  the  weather. 
The  softwoods  mixed  in  amongst  the  hardwoods  can  be  handled 
for  $3.00  to  $4.00  per  M  less.  Expressed  in  man  hours  and  horse 
hours  per  M  the  costs  would  be  as  follows: 

Man  hours  Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 6 

Skidding 5  6 

Hauling  to  mUl,  3  mUes 10  20 

Milling 10 

31  26 


26  NORTHERN  HARDWOOD   TYPE 

This  means  that  a  felling  crew  of  2  men  would  have  to  fell  and 
buck  3M  per  day,  the  skidding  crew  handle  as  much,  and  the 
hauling  teams  make  three  trips  per  day  with  at  least  300  board 
feet  per  load. 

The  logging  and  milling  methods  follow  very  closely  those 
employed  in  the  spruce  type.  The  large  camp  is  the  rule  because 
of  the  greater  efficiency  secured  by  having  the  men  close  to  their 
work.  Skidding  on  the  bare  ground  is  the  common  practice 
because  the  logs  must  be  bunched  up  before  being  hauled  out  on 
two-sleds.  The  slopes  are  seldom  steep  enough  to  make  it  worth 
while  to  bobsled  the  logs  directly  to  the  railroad  or  mill.  Hard- 
wood logs  cannot  be  successfully  driven.  The  capacity  of  the 
mill  varies  within  wide  Hmits.  Many  successful  operations  have 
large  mills  with  railroad  transportation  from  the  woods.  This 
insures  the  highest  efficiency  of  manufacture  because  solid  foun- 
dations are  needed  if  hardwood  is  to  be  sawn  well.  But  it  does  not 
encourage  close  utilization  in  the  woods.  By  reason  of  the  cost 
of  transportation  to  the  mill  there  is  a  strong  tendency  to  only 
haul  out  the  high  grade  material.  To  prevent  this  loss  of  the 
lower  grades  and  save  on  the  haul  from  the  woods  the  experiment 
has  been  tried  of  placing  the  mill  in  the  woods.  Then  a  higher 
percentage  of  the  felled  tree  reaches  the  mill  but  only  the  seasoned 
product  in  a  more  or  less  finished  state  is  hauled  out.  If  the 
produce  is  boards  the  saving  on  the  haul  is  considerable  since 
even  air  seasoned  hardwood  lumber  weighs  about*  half  that  of  the 
same  amount  of  lumber  in  log  form.  An  even  greater  saving 
can  be  made  where  some  form  of  finished  product  is  nianufactured. 
Dowel,  handle  and  bobbin  mills,  for  example,  located  close  to  the 
woods,  utilize  the  tree  fairly  closely  and  have  merely  the  finished 
product  to  haul. 

All  the  species  make  excellent  firewood  since  they  have  a  fuel 
value  per  cord  equivalent  to  about  three-quarters  of  a  ton  of 
coal.  Cordwood  cost  from  $1.50  to  $2.50  to  cut  and  pile  in  1915, 
or  7  to  10  man  hours,  and  the  hauling  did  not  exceed  5c  cents  per 
cord  per  mile. 

Average  selling  prices  are  difficult  to  give  because  of  the 
variety  of  uses  to  which  the  different  species  are  put.     The  figures 


LAND   VALUES  2^ 

given  below  are  simply  general  averages  which  were  attained  with 
reasonable  care.  Higher  prices  were,  of  course,  secured  if  special 
products  were  manufactured. 

Average  Sale  Vaxues  per  M 
f.o.b.  mill.     1914 

White  pme $18.00  Beech $16.00 

Hemlock 17.00  Chestnut 19.00 

Spruce 18. 00  Red  oak 18. 00 

Balsam 17.00  Hard  maple 18.00 

Paper  birch 1 7 . 00  Soft  maple 17. 00 

Yellow  birch 17.00  Basswood 18.00 

Black  birch 1 7 .  00  White  ash 20 .  00 

Cordwood  sold  for  $3  for  softwood  and  $4  to  $6  for  hardwood. 

To  determine  what  stumpage  price  may  be  realized  the  costs 
of  logging  and  manufacture  must  be  deducted  from  these  sale 
values.  For  the  softwoods  there  should  be  a  margin  of  $6  to 
$10  in  the  lumber  -with  the  chance  of  getting  an  extra  dollar  or 
two  per  M  from  the  cordwood.  With  all  the  hardwoods,  except 
red  oak,  basswood  and  white  ash,  such  high  returns  cannot  be 
expected,  so  that  a  margin  of  $4  to  $7  for  the  lumber  and  an  addi- 
tional $1  per  M  from  the  cordwood  is  very  satisfactory.  Oak, 
basswood  and  ash  have  special  uses  which  enhance  their  stumpage 
values  so  that  stumpage  prices  of  $10  per  M  are  paid  in  the  terri- 
tory tributary  to  the  special  establishments  which  need  these 
species. 

Land  Values. —  Here  again  as  with  the  spruce  type  the  land 
seldom  has  any  value  aside  from  what  will  be  paid  for  the  timber. 
Most  transactions  have  not  specified  any  separate  valuation  for 
the  land  but  the  transfers  have  simply  been  on  the  basis  of  stump- 
age values.  Hence  in  order  to  determine  what  the  soil  capacity 
is  for  timber  production  sales  of  pasture  land  must  be  consulted. 
Our  Puritan  forefathers  in  their  hunger  for  land  cleared  up  many 
hillsides  for  pasture  purposes  out  of  the  hardwood  type.  The 
modern  tendency  is  to  allow  such  clearings  to  reforest  themselves 
and  holdings  of  this  kind  which  are  neither  pasture  or  timberland 
may  be  purchased  for  from  $3  to  $15  an  acre,  depending  upon 
their  location.     But  these  figures  carinot  be  taken  as  representa- 


28  NORTHERN   HARDWOOD   TYPE 

tive  for  the  whole  type  because  they  only  apply  to  the  most 
accessible  lands. 

On  the  basis  of  a  loo-year  rotation  with  compound  interest  at 
3  per  cent  and  assuming  a  final  yield  of  15M  board  feet  per  acre 
hardwood  lands  show  a  value  of  $4  per  acre.  This  yield  is  con- 
servative because  it  does  not  include  thinnings.  These  latter 
should  easily  give  a  margin  above  possible  losses  from  fire,  insects, 
fungi,  etc. 

For  agricultural  purposes  this  type  of  soil  has  a  higher  value 
than  spruce  land  because  it  is  deeper,  has  a  higher  percentage  of 
loam  with  less  raw  humus  and  the  growing  season  is  longer. 
Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  use  of  these  lands  for 
pasture  prior  to  the  Civil  War.  It  is  conceivable  that  a  similar 
demand  may  recur  but  it  seems  more  probable  that  the  steepness 
of  the  slopes  and  number  and  size  of  the  rocks  will  prevent  profit- 
able cultivation.  Taken  as  a  whole  at  least  90  per  cent  of  the 
type  may  safely  be  said  to  be  better  adapted  to  the  growing  of 
timber  than  to  either  tillage  or  pasture. 

Titles. —  The  past  history  of  land  in  the  hardwood  type  makes 
the  searching  of  titles  a  difficult  problem.  The  unit  areas  are 
small,  the  surveys  are  poor  and  transfers  are  not  recorded  accu- 
rately or  completely.  Such  a  condition  of  affairs  is  inevitable 
with  land  which  has  been  considered  of  little  value  for  a  long 
period.  The  only  saving  factor  is  that  these  so-called  "  back 
pastures  "  and  "  sugar  bushes  "  have  in  many  cases  been  regarded 
as  integral  parts  of  the  farm  and  transferred  accordingly.  It  is, 
however,  always  necessary  to  look  up  the  probate  and  tax  sale 
records  to  make  sure  that  there  are  no  liens  on  the  property  which 
do  not  appear  in  the  County  Recorder's  Office. 


CHAPTER  III 
WHITE  PINE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  This  is  the  type  from  which  the  colon- 
ists obtained  the  masts  and  shipbuilding  timber  to  which  Pepys 
made  such  feeling  reference  in  his  diary  — 

"  From  New  England  ships  come  home  safe  to  Falmouth 
with  masts  for  the  King;   which  is  a  blessing  mighty  unex- 
pected, and  without  which  we  must  have  failed  the  next 
year." 
Here  were  trained  the  loggers  who  have  made  Maine  so  famous 
by  their  exploits  with  axe  and  peevy  and  in  this  type  they  have 
gone  westward  thru  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  to  the  Lake 
States  as  the  virgin  supplies  were  exhausted  on  the  Atlantic  coast. 
Its  exact  boundaries  are  frequently  difficult  to  delimit  where  the 
type  merges  into  the  hardwood  type  but  roughly  it  covers  the 
lower  parts  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont  and  Massachu- 
setts and  the  more  elevated  portions  of  Connecticut.     In  New 
York  and  the  Lake  States  it  is  a  lowland  type  but  only  occurs  in 
the  northern  parts. 

The  growing  season  is  distinctly  longer  than  with  the  two  types 
previously  considered.  Ordinarily  frosts  do  not  occur  between 
May  I  and  September  15  so  that  there  is  a  vegetative  period  of 
about  five  months.  Moreover,  the  temperatures  are  higher.  For 
the  year  the  mean  is  50°  F.  while  during  the  summer  the  maxi- 
mum is  100°  F.  with  an  average  of  65°  F.  This  means  consider- 
ably more  transpiration  and  evaporation  than  with  the  spruce 
and  hardwood  types. 

Another  factor  which  decreases  the  total  available  moisture  is 
the  lessened  precipitation.  This  is  mainly  the  result  of  lower 
altitude  above  sea  level.  The  hardwood  and  spruce  types  cover 
the  mountains  and  hills  which  intercept  the  moisture-laden 
winds  from  the  west.     Consequently  instead  of  being  over  45 

29 


so  WHITE   PINE  TYPE 

inches  as  with  the  other  two  types  it  seldom  exceeds  that  figure 
as  a  maximum.  In  fact,  the  pineries  of  the  Lake  States  have  an 
average  annual  precipitation  of  30  inches. 

There  is,  however,  one  factor  which  tends  to  conserve  the  pre- 
cipitation. That  is  the  comparatively  level  topography  which 
retards  rapid  runoff.  Generally  speaking  the  pine  type  is  con- 
fined to  the  overwash  plains  formed  by  the  streams  which  drained 
from  the  retreating  ice  sheets  in  the  Glacial  Age.  These  are 
gently  sloping  sand  or  gravel  beds  from  which  the  runoff  is  slow. 
But  the  openness  of  the  oil  tends  to  counteract  in  part,  at  least, 
the  lack  of  slope. 

As  a  consequence  the  availaole  moisture  is  so  deficient  that  the 
predominating  species,  white  pine,  red  pine,  jack  pine  and  pitch 
pine,  are  all  adapted  to  sites  not  abundantly  supplied  with 
moisture.  Species  which  cannot  endure  dry  sites  are  restricted 
to  those  within  the  type  which  by  reason  of  drainage  or  soil  con- 
ditions have  more  available  moisture.  Hence,  hemlock  and 
hardwoods  are  only  found  in  this  type  in  deep-soiled,  well-watered 
valleys.  Moreover,  but  few  of  the  deciduous  leafed  trees  charac- 
teristic of  the  hardwood  type  just  described  occur  in  this  type. 
The  important  ones  are  white  oak,  chestnut,  cherry  or  black 
birch,  gray  birch  and  black  cherry.  Paper  and  yellow  birch, 
beech  and  red  and  white  ash  occur  sparingly  on  the  cooler  sites 
included  within  the  type. 

Since  the  pine  type  is  most  abundant  on  lands  which  were 
early  sought  for  agricultural  purposes,  fire  and  clearing  have  had 
profound  effects  upon  the  composition  of  the  type.  In  addition 
lumbering  has  played  an  important  role  in  modifying  the  original 
forest  conditions.  As  a  consequence  there  are  very  few  stands 
left  which  are  representative  of  the  type  as  the  early  settlers 
found  it.  These  virgin  stands  were  either  pure  pine  or  pine 
mixed  with  hemlock  and  tolerant  hardwoods  like  sweet  birch 
and  beech.  The  usual  course  of  history  after  the  removal  of  the 
virgin  stands  was  more  or  less  repeated  burnings.  Fire  was 
used  intentionally  to  clean  up  the  land  for  cultivation  or  allowed 
to  run  unchecked  in  the  logging  slash.  As  a  consequence  the 
poorer  sandy  lands  are  now  covered  with  a  scrubby  growth  of 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS  3 1 

pitch  pine  and  scrub  oak  in  New  England  and  jack  pine  in  the 
Lake  States.  All  three  of  these  species  are  capable  of  standing 
repeated  burnings.  Pitch  pine  and  jack  pine  have  thick  bark 
which  does  not  burn  readily  and  their  cones  are  also  almost  fire- 
proof. The  scrub  oak  holds  its  own  thru  its  ability  to  sprout 
after  being  injured.  Fire  is,  in  fact,  responsible  in  most  cases  for 
the  failure  of  white  pine  to  replace  itself.  In  places  where  fire  is 
kept  out  the  pine  comes  in  either  in  pure  stands  or  in  mixture 
with  hardwoods.  For  example,  old  pastures  within  the  type  are 
quickly  covered  with  pine  "  bushes  "  while  the  hardwoods  are 
kept  in  check  by  grazing  if  the  pasture  is  still  used.  This  results 
in  practically  pure  stands  of  pine.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
hardwoods  are  not  held  in  check  by  grazing  they  frequently 
Occupy  the  old  fields  to  the  apparent  exclusion  of  pine.  This 
is  particularly  true  with  such  light  seeded,  vigorous  species  as 
gray  birch  and  aspen.  But  the  pine  slowly  but  surely  works  its 
way  in  under  the  thinner  crowned  hardwoods  and  eventually 
replaces  them  because  it  is  longer  hved  so  that  the  final  result  is 
a  nearly  pure  stand  of  pine  again.  In  fact  white  and  red  pine  are 
so  well  adapted  to  the  climatic  and  soil  conditions  in  this  type 
that  they  can  be  relied  upon  to  take  possession  of  the  ground  if 
they  are  given  even  half  a  chance. 

The  commonest  subtypes  in  this  type  and  their  composition 
by  number  are  as  follows: 

Pure  white  pine  —  over  90  per  cent  white  pine. 

White  pine  and  hemlock  —  50  per  cent  white  pine  and  50 

per  cent  hemlock  and  hardwoods. 
White  pine  and  gray  birch  —  60  per  cent  white  pine,  40  per 

cent  gray  birch. 
White  pine  and  oak  —  40  per  cent  white  pine,  60  per  cent 

red,  white,  and  black  oak. 
White  pine  and  pitch  pine  —  50  per  cent  white  pine  and  50 

per  cent  pitch  pine. 

Besides  these  subtypes  based  on  composition  there  are  also,  of 
course,  subtypes  due  to  various  degrees  of  logging,  as,  for  example, 
virgin,  culled,  and  cutover  stands. 


32 


WHITE  PINE  TYPE 


Both  the  fire  hazard  and  liability  are  high  in  this  type  so  that 
damage  from  this  cause  is  frequent  and  severe.  Locomotive 
engines  and  smokers  riding  on  the  railroads,  in  automobiles, 
behind  horses,  or  walking  for  business,  pleasure  or  to  hunt  are 
the  commonest  offenders.  Two-thirds  of  the  forest  fires  are  due 
to  these  two  causes  alone.  For  the  other  third,  fires  started  to 
clear  land,  stationary  engines  and  incendiaries  are  responsible. 
The  important  point  to  recognize  with  reference  to  the  fire 
haz3,rd  in  this  type  is  that  it  is  so  situated  that  it  is  brought  into 
direct  contact  with  nearly  all  the  human  activities  of  the  states 
in  which  it  is  found.  It  occupies  the  low  lying  land  near  the 
seacoast  where  the  railroads  form  networks  of  interlacing  tracks. 
Farms  surround  it  and  cut  it  up.  As  a  consequence  it  has  had 
to  suffer  from  every  kind  of  fire  carelessness  of  which  man  is 
capable. 

But  worst  of  all  is  the  amount  of  damage  which  fire  can  do. 
The  young  stands  are  completely  wiped  out  because  the  inflam- 
mable tops  furnish  fuel  for  even  a  gentle  ground  fire.  Older 
stands  suffer  as  badly  if  there  is  a  wind  because  the  fire  leaps 
from  the  ground  and  becomes  a  crown  fire.  In  both  cases  the 
thin  bark  is  usually  scorched  so  that  the  tree  dies.  Taking  every- 
thing into  consideration  white  pine  stands  are  as  poor  a  fire  risk 
as  any  of  our  timber  wealth.  After  a  fire  they  must  be  imme- 
diately cut.  If  allowed  to  stand  the  sapwood  quickly  decays  and 
the  loss  is  often  as  high  as  50  per  cent  within  three  years. 

In  addition  to  fire  white  pine  stands  have  recently  been 
threatened  with  another  devastating  agency.  This  is  the  white 
pine  blister  rust,  an  imported  European  disease  with  two  hosts, 
the  five  needle  pines  and  currants  or  gooseberries.  Unless 
prompt  measures  are  taken  for  its  suppression  it  threatens  all 
our  five  needle  pines  and  there  is  a  chain  of  them  across  the  con- 
tinent including  such  important  commercial  species  as  the 
eastern  white  pine,  the  Idaho  white  pine  or  silver  pine,  and  the 
sugar  pine  of  California.  It  is  most  serious  with  small  trees. 
Fortunately  the  disease  can  be  controlled  by  the  eradication  of 
currant  and  gooseberry  bushes,  both  wild  and  cultivated. 
Prompt  action  on  the  part  of  New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  Massa- 


GENERAL  CONDITIONS  33 

chusetts,  Rhode  Island  and  Connecticut  \vill  effectually  check 
the  disease.  As  compared  with  the  capital  invested  in  white 
pine  timber  and  woodworking  plants  the  value  of  all  the  culti- 
vated currants  is  practically  negligible.  Red  pine  and  pitch  pine 
are  subject  to  a  similar  native  blister  rust  which  has  as  its  alter- 
nate host  sweet  fern,  but  fortunately  this  disease  is  not  so  virulent 
as  the  imported  white  pine  blister  rust. 

Another  fungus  which  occasionally  kills  white  pine  is  the 
bracket  fungus,  Trametes  pini,  or  red  rot.  This  is  a  heart  rot 
which  enters  thru  a  dead  limb  and  destroys  the  tree  by  eating 
away  the  heartwood.  Sapwood  it  cannot  attack.  But  the  decay 
of  the  heartwood  leaves  the  tree  without  a  backbone,  so  to  speak, 
and  the  wind  tumbles  it  over.  The  wood  of  such  a  tree  is,  of 
course,  useless  since  there  is  but  a  shell  of  sound  sapwood  around 
the  rotted  heartwood.  It  is,  however,  usually  possible  to  get  one 
or  more  sound  logs  from  an  infected  tree  because  the  fungus  com- 
monly enters  near  the  ground  and  works  within  a  limited  area. 
To  prevent  the  spread  of  this  parasite  all  infested  trees  should  be 
removed  as  quickly  as  possible. 

Another  imported  pest  is  the  gypsy  moth.  While  the  larvae 
cannot  feed  on  conifers  for  the  first  week  after  hatching  they  can 
and  will  defoliate  white  pine,  red  pine  and  hemlock  if  they  get 
started  on  hardwood.  Consequently  stands  of  gray  birch  and 
white  or  red  pine  offer  ideal  conditions  for  its  development.  All 
the  egg  clusters  laid  on  the  gray  birch  have  the  proper  kind  of 
food  to  give  them  a  good  start  so  that  after  the  first  week  the 
larvae  are  able  to  digest  coniferous  foliage.  In  the  individual 
woodlot  there  are  two  methods  of  control.  By  all  odds  the  best 
way  is  to  cut  out  the  hardwoods  because  they  can  usually  be 
made  to  yield  some  returns  as  cordwood  at  least.  Painting  the 
egg  clusters  in  the  winter  with  creosote  is  effective  if  thoroly  done 
but  the  expense  is  usually  prohibitive  in  large  lots.  It  is  difficult 
and  time  consuming  to  climb  thru  a  large  oak  for  example.  Such 
methods,  while  justified  for  shade  trees,  are  usually  not  feasible 
for  woodlots. 

White  pine  is  attacked  by  two  forms  of  plant  Kce  —  Chermes  — 
which  occasionally  become  abundant  enough  to  disfigure  or  even 


34  WHITE   PINE   TYPE 

destroy  it.     In  the  woodlot  the  best  control  measure  is  to  cut  and 
burn  the  infested  trees. 

Another  insect  which  disfigures  the  white  pine  is  the  white 
pine  weevil.  It  kills  the  terminal  shoot  by  girdling  it.  The  eggs 
of  this  beetle  are  laid  in  the  upper  part  of  the  terminal  shoot 
during  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  and  the  larvee  burrow  around 
underneath  the  bark  the  following  summer.  The  large  number 
of  deformed  trees  in  nearly  every  second  growth  stand  of  white 
pine  shows  that  the  insect  is  no  new  pest  but  has  been  attacking 
white  pine  for  at  least  a  century.  Nevertheless,  it  could  be 
greatly  diminished,  if  not  eradicated,  by  a  determined  and  con- 
certed effort.  If  the  infested  shoots  are  cut  and  burned  before 
the  first  of  August  the  weevils  are  destroyed  before  the  adult 
form  emerges. 

The  principal  insect  and  fungus  enemies  of  the  commercial 
tree  species  in  this  type  are  listed  below : 

White  pine  —  gypsy  moth,  Chermes,  weevil,  blister  rust,  and 

red  rot. 
Red  pine  —  blister  rust. 
Hemlock  —  no  serious  enemies. 
Butternut  —  no  serious  enemies. 
Shagbark  hickory  —  no  serious  enemies. 
Black  birch  —  gypsy  moth,  heart  rot  (Fomes  igniarius  and 

f  omentarius) . 
Grey  birch  —  gypsy  moth,  heart  rot  (Fomes  igniarius  and 

f  omentarius) . 
Beech  —  gypsy    moth,    heart    rot    (Fomes    igniarius    and 

f  omentarius) . 
Red  and  white  oak  —  gypsy  moth,  browntail  moth,  heart 

rot  (Fomes  igniarius,  squamosus,  and  sulphureus). 
Elm  —  gypsy  moth,  elm  leaf  beetle,  heart  rot  (Polyporus 
squamosus) . 
More  complete  data  probably  exists  for  the  growth  in  this  type 
than  for  any  other  in  the  United  States.     On  account  of  their 
high  value  white  pine  stands  have  been  very  thoroughly  studied 
in  New  Hampshire,   Vermont,   Massachusetts,   and  Michigan. 
The  best  information  on  the  diameter  and   height   growth  and 
yield  of  the  species  in  this  type  is  summarized  below: 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


35 


0^*00 

N     -^J-  t^  0\ 


c^   vo<£)   t^ 


ro  O 


to    I^  O    ro 

ID    Ol  CO    fO 


CO  <£l    O    O 


00  to    1-1    Tj- 


00   O  CO 
>  o  lo  o^ 


Tt  J^OO    Ol 


>.>.>.>, 


,JC8 


36  WHITE   PINE  TYPE 

In  diameter  and  height  growth  and  hence  volume  accretion, 
since  diameter  and  height  are  to  two  functions  of  volume,  white 
pine,  red  pine,  white  ash,  aspen,  and  red  oak  are  in  a  class  by 
themselves.  All  of  them  will  attain  a  diameter  of  i8  inches  and 
a  total  height  of  over  85  feet  in  100  years.  Basswood  almost 
reaches  this  size  but  falls  a  little  short.  Of  the  hardwoods, 
beech,  birch,  and  maple,  the  first  is  the  slowest  growing.  The 
other  two  grow  from  25  to  50  per  cent  faster.  Hemlock  is  usually 
the  slowest  growing  of  all.  In  yield  white  pine  leads  because  it 
is  at  the  same  time  a  fairly  rapid  grower  and  will  stand  much  side 
shading.  This  is  the  reason  why  pure  stands  of  red  pine  and 
white  ash  do  not  yield  more  heavily.  They  are  intolerant  of 
shading.  Aspen  has  this  same  fault  and  consequently  does  not 
produce  so  much  wood  per  acre  in  100  years  as  do  stands  of  beech, 
birch,  and  maple. 

Timber  Valuation. —  In  the  estimating  of  white  pine  lots  there 
are  only  two  factors  which  tend  to  reduce  the  cost.  First  of  all 
the  lots  are  usually  accessible.  Suitable  hving  accommodations 
can  often  be  secured  within  a  few  minutes'  walk  of  the  work. 
Secondly,  the  stands  are  generally  quite  uniform  in  composition 
and  density  since  they  are  commonly  pure,  even  aged  stands. 
However,  these'  two  favorable  factors  are  offset  by  the  high  value 
of  the  timber  and  the  small  size  of  the  tracts.  As  a  consequence 
a  large  percentage  has  to  be  estimated.  Seldom  is  it  safe  to  take 
less  than  20  per  cent  and  with  small  lots  all  the  merchantable 
timber  should  be  measured.  In  fact  estimating  as  a  skilled  trade 
has  reached  its  highest  development  in  the  white  pine  region.  A 
cruiser  brought  up  in  the  Lake  States,  for  example,  has  been  so 
thoroly  grounded  in  the  need  for  careful  work  that  he  can  succeed 
almost  anywhere. 

Diameter  limits  vdW  be  the  same  as  in  the  other  types  dis- 
cussed. For  breast-height  eight  inches  is  the  smallest  merchant- 
able lumber  tree  in  softwoods  and  ten  inches  in  hardwoods.  The 
top  diameters  usually  taken  are  four  inches  for  softwood  lumber 
and  eight  inches  for  hardwood  lumber.  Cordwood  can  be  cut 
from  trees  four  inches  in  diameter  breast-high  and  run  out  to 
two  inches  in  the  top  end. 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


37 


The  strip  method  of  estimating  costs  not  less  than  1 5  cents  an 
acre  where  the  amount  and  quality  of  the  timber  and  its  value 
are  reported  upon  and  a  topographic  map  is  also  constructed. 
This  should  give  a  30  per  cent  estimate  with  an  average  run  of 
three  miles  of  strip  per  working  day. 

Since  white  pine  was  one  of  the  first  species  to  become  commer- 
cially important  unusually  good  figures  are  available  as  to  the 
course  of  stumpage  prices.  Two  such  tables  are  given,  the  first 
taken  from  Compton's  "  Organization  of  the  Lumber  Industry  " 
and  the  second  from  the  report  of  the  National  Conservation 
Commission. 


Sales  of  northern  pine  by  the  State  of  Minnesota 
(includes  some  red  pine  and  spruce) 

White  pine  stumpage  prices  in 
Michigan 

Per  M 

PerM 

PerM 

Per  M 

1880 

Si. 47 
1-73 

2.25 

2.18 

517 

1 90s 
1910 
1911 
1912 
1913 

$7   18 
8.00 
8.00 
8.00 
8.00 

1866 
1870 
1875 
1880 
1885 

Si  .00 

2.25 
2.50 
3.00 
5. 00 

1890 
1895 
1900 
1915 

S5   50 

1885 

5  25 

1890 

10.00 

i8qc 

15.00 

IQOO 

Both  of  these  show  a  fairly  regular  advance  in  price.  In  fact 
white  pine  is  one  of  the  few  important  American  species  in  which 
the  stumpage  price  has  equalled  the  cost  of  growing  the  timber. 
White  pine  can  be  grown  on  rotations  of  50  to  75  years  for  a  cost 
of  $10  a  M  and  in  both  cases  cited  above  that  figure  has  been 
reached.  It  must,  however,  be  remembered  that  the  stumpage 
prices  given  above  are  for  old  growth  timber  which  has  taken  at 
least  150  years  to  reach  its  present  size.  Nevertheless,  the  state- 
ment is  valid  that  white  pine  may  be  profitably  grown.  A  price 
of  $10  per  M  has  been  realized  for  second  growth  pine  in  several 
places  in  New  England,  New  York,  and  the  Lake  States.  To 
show  the  regional  variation  in  stumpage  prices  the  Forest  Service 
figures  collected  in  191 2  may  be  cited: 

PerM 

Northeastern  states 8 .  44 

Lake  states 10.39 

Southeastern  states 3.91 


38  WHITE   PINE   TYPE 

Mill  run  values  have  also  increased  but  not  in  the  same  ratio  as 
stumpage  prices.  For  example  during  the  period  from  1900  to 
1907  stumpage  prices  rose  121  per  cent  while  lumber  prices  only 
advanced  53  per  cent  or  from  $12.66  to  $19.41.  At  present 
(1920)  the  following  prices  are  being  paid  by  retailers  in  the  large 
markets: 

PerM 

Uppers $200 .  00 

Bam  boards 45  •  00 

Boxboards,  round  edge 35  •  00 

Logging  methods  vary  with  the  region.  In  the  New  England 
States  and  to  some  extent  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  white 
pine  is  now  confined  to  woodlots.  These  the  owners  log  in  the 
winter  time  using  their  farm  teams.  This  is  the  particular  region 
of  the  portable  sawmill.  The  tracts  are  small  but  accessible  so 
that  the  mill  can  be  readily  hauled  into  the  timber  and  labor  can 
be  picked  up  from  the  nearby  farms.  Winter  time  is  preferred 
both  because  it  is  easier  to  find  men  then  and  because  of  the 
easier  hauling  on  the  snow.  The  average  costs  of  such  an  opera- 
tion were  as  follows  in  1914: 

PerM 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  50 

Hauling  logs  to  mill 2 .  00 

MUling 2.50 

Sticking     i .  00 

$7.00 

75  to  90  per  cent  of  the  output  goes  into  boxboards  so  that  the 
average  price  of  the  lumber  at  the  mill  ranged  from  $14  to  $20 
depending  upon  the  distance  from  a  box  factory.  Hence  the 
stumpage  price  ranged  from  $6  to  $10  per  M.  To  this  could 
often  be  added  $1  to  $2  from  the  sale  of  cordwood  cut  from  the 
tops. 

In  the  Lake  States  and  other  places  where  larger  bodies  of  pine 
are  involved  the  methods  are  different.  The  men  must  be  pro- 
vided for  in  large  camps  back  long  distances  from  the  railroad. 
Large  mills  are  the  rule  and  this  entails  either  a  long  haul  or  a 
long  drive  or  both.  This  is  the  region  where  the  iced  road  care- 
fully graded  and  maintained  has  been  most  highly  developed. 


TIMBER  VALUATION  39 

By  it  the  cost  of  transporting  the  logs  from  the  woods  to  the  mill 
or  drivable  streams  has  been  reduced  to  the  minimum  because 
the  size  of  the  load  can  be  increased  10  to  20  times.  Average 
costs  for  a  Lake  State  operation  were  as  follows  in  19 14: 

PerM 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  00 

Skidding 2 .  00 

Hauling  to  drivable  stream  2 .  00 

Driving 1 .  00 

Milling 3 .  00 

$9.00 

The  only  step  which  is  cheaper  than  in  the  woodlot  region  is  the 
felling  and  bucking.  The  large  size  of  the  timber  is  the  factor 
which  decreases  the  cost.  The  transport  of  the  logs  to  the  mill 
is  more  expensive  because  the  distance  is  greater  and  the  work  is 
done  in  two  steps  instead  of  merely  one  as  in  woodlot  work. 
Instead  of  using  a  skoot  to  haul  the  logs  the  Lake  State  practice 
is  to  skid  the  logs  into  piles  and  then  put  them  onto  two  sleds. 
Where  a  railroad  and  steam  skidders  are  employed  costs  can  be 
reduced  if  the  size  of  the  pperation  justifies  the  original  outlay 
for  equipment.  Sawing  charges  are  likewise  higher  for  the  large 
mill  than  for  the  portable  but  the  former  turns  out  higher  grade 
material  so  that  its  use  is  justified  where  the  timber  is  of  medium 
to  large  size.  In  fact  the  returns  in  the  Lake  States  are  usually 
larger  because  a  greater  amount  of  higher  grade  timber  is  obtained. 
As  against  an  average  mill  run  price  of  $18  per  M  for  the  portable 
mill  the  large  mill  obtained  in  1914  $25  per  M  for  its  output. 
Hence,  stumpage  prices  are  higher  in  the  Lake  States.  In  fact 
there  is  very  little  virgin  white  pine  no  matter  how  inaccessible 
that  can  be  purchased  nowadays  for  less  than  $10  per  M. 

The  amount  of  work  turned  out  per  day  also  varies  in  the  two 
regions.  In  the  woodlot  area  a  crew  of  two  men  should  fell  and 
buck  5M  board  feet  on  the  average  while  a  day's  work  with  the 
larger  pine  is  8M  feet.  Expressed  in  terms  of  man  hours  it 
takes  3^  hours  per  M  in  the  small  pine  of  the  woodlot  region  and 
only  2\  hours  in  the  stands  of  old  growth  timber.  Getting  the 
logs  to  the  mill  is  naturally  much  cheaper  in  the  woodlot  region. 


40 


WHITE   PINE   TYPE 


There  it  costs  three  man  hours  and  three  team  hours  per  M  ( | 
mile  haul)  where  a  small  mill  is  employed.  Milling  is  likewise 
less  expensive,  3^  man  hours  per  M  in  the  portable  mill  and  four 
in  the  large  one  exclusive  of  planing,  dry  kilning,  etc. 

For  hemlock  stumpage  prices  there  are  the  data  made  avail- 
able in  Frothingham's  bulletin  on  the  eastern  hemlock  (Bulletin 
152,  U.  S.  Forest  Service).     They  may  be  summarized  as  follows: 


AVERAGE   STUMPAGE  VALUES  PER  M 

FOOT 

Northeastern  States 

Lake  States 

Southern  States 

1889 

(Estimated) 

$1.50 

2.7s 

5-72 

6.28 

(Estimated) 

$1  .00 

2.25 

3-83 

3.78 

(Estimated) 
$1  .00 

1899 

2.84 
3  05 

By  comparison  with  the  figures  for  white  pine  it  will  be  seen  that 
hemlock  is  from  68  to  28  per  cent  less  than  white  pine  but  has 
increased  during  the  period  from  1889  and  191 2  between  200  and 
300  per  cent  which  is  essentially  the  same  rate  at  which  white 
pine  stumpage  prices  have  advanced.  In  other  words  while 
hemlock  has  fewer  uses  than  white  pine,  and  hence  a  lower  value, 
its  stumpage  has  kept  pace  with  that  of  pine  but  on  a  lower  level. 
The  logging  and  manufacture  of  hemlock  differs  little  in  method 
from  that  of  white  pine.  It  is,  however,  a  heavier  and  harder 
wood  and  does  not  float  so  readily.  Hence  the  cost  of  getting 
it  out  of  the  woods  and  thru  the  mill  is  at  least  15  per  cent  greater. 
Unfortunately  too  its  sale  value  as  lumber  is  low  because  of  the 
rather  limited  uses  to  which  it  can  be  put.  It  is  generally  only 
used  for  boxes,  framing,  and  inside  finish  if  carefully  selected.  Its 
main  competitors  are  southern  yellow  pine  and  Douglas  fir,  both 
of  which  are  more  durable,  and  spruce  which  is  easier  to  work. 
Consequently  its  sale  value  has  always  been  low.  At  present 
(1920)  the  following  prices  were  being  paid  in  the  Boston  whole- 
sale market: 

Per  M 

Hemlock  frames,  8  inches  and  under  (estimated) $45 .  00 

Hemlock  boards  planed  and  clipped 40. 00 

Hemlock  boards 30 .  00 


TIMBER  VALUATION  4I 

Mill  run  prices  would  be  the  weighted  average  of  these  figures  less 
the  freight  haul  and  handling  from  the  mill  to  the  market.  Sel- 
dom will  they  exceed  $40  per  M, 

One  factor  that  increases  the  possible  returns  from  hemlock 
lumber  is  the  use  of  the  bark  for  tanning  purposes.  This  brought 
from  $7  to  $11  per  ton  at  the  tannery.  Yields  vary  from  2.8  to 
0.4  tons  per  M  feet  of  lumber  with  an  average  of  |  ton.  Peeling, 
drying  and  hauling  cost  from  $4  to  $6  per  ton. 

An  additional  way  in  which  higher  returns  per  acre  may  be 
obtained  from  hemlock  stands  is  the  sale  of  the  tops  for  pulp. 
Limbs  as  small  as  four  inches  inside  the  bark  at  the  top  end  may 
be  sold  for  this  purpose  at  from  $5  to  $15  per  cord,  unpeeled, 
where  there  is  a  market  for  it.  Cordwood  cost  from  $3  to  $6 
delivered  at  the  mill  and  about  |  cord  may  be  obtained  from  the 
limbs  and  tops  per  M  feet  of  sawlogs. 

Summing  up  the  factors  which  influence  the  possible  returns 
from  hemlock  timber,  the  logging  and  milling  cost  from  $8  to 
$10  per  M;  and  the  lumber  was  worth  about  $16  per  M  at  the 
mill,  leaving  a  margin  of  $6  to  $8  for  stumpage  and  profit.  To 
this  it  was  possible  to  add  under  favorable  market  conditions 
$1.50  to  $2.50  per  M  from  the  sale  of  bark  and  $1  per  M  from 
pulp- wood.  Therefore,  the  total  returns  per  M  should  be  from 
$6  to  $11.50. 

While  important  locally  aspen  forms  such  a  small  percentage 
of  the  total  amount  of  wood  used  in  the  United  States  that  sepa- 
rate census  stumpage  figures  have  never  been  given  for  it.  At 
the  present  time  it  sells  on  the  stump  for  $1  to  $5  per  cord  accord- 
ing to  the  proximity  of  plants  which  use  it.  Wood  pulp  for  paper 
and  excelsior  are  the  two  principal  ways  in  which  it  is  manu- 
factured and  for  both  uses  it  commands  a  price  of  $7  to  $9  a  cord, 
peeled.  In  both  industries  peeled  four-foot  bolts  are  the  form  in 
which  aspen  is  usually  sold.  The  minimum  top  diameter  inside 
the  bark  is  four  inches  so  that  it  does  not  pay  to  cut  trees  which  are 
less  than  eight  inches  in  diameter,  breast-high.  Logging  is  started 
about  the  first  of  May  and  must  be  completed  before  July  i  to 
take  advantage  of  the  spring  peeling  season.  Two  men  can  fell 
and  peel  about  50  trees  or  12  cords  per  day.     Sawing  into  four- 


42  WHITE   PINE   TYPE 

foot  lengths  and  piling  takes  about  t\nce  as  long  per  cord  so  that 
the  average  day's  work  is  six  cords  for  two  men.  Hence  the 
total  cost  of  the  logging  was  about  $i  per  cord  in  1914  under 
favorable  circumstances  but  contracts  could  seldom  be  let  for 
less  than  $1.25  per  cord  and  often  ran  up  nearly  to  $2.  The 
hauling  cost  varies  with  the  number  of  turns  per  day  but  rarely 
exceeded  50  cents  per  mile  per  cord.  The  proper  stumpage  price 
for  any  tract  may  be  closely  approximated  from  these  costs  by 
deducting  them  from  the  sale  value.  Aspen  is  sometimes  used 
for  lumber  where  durability  is  not  a  factor  but  it  is  a  soft,  weak 
wood  which  is  difhcult  to  season  and  did  not  sell  for  more  than 
$25  per  M  retail.  As  fuel  it  is  excellent  where  a  quick,  hot  fire 
is  desired  but  did  not  sell  for  more  than  $4  a  cord  in  four-foot 
lengths,  because  there  are  so  many  better  fuel  woods  in  the 
northeast.  These  figures  would  have  to  be  doubled  to  bring 
them  to  a  1920  status. 

The  stumpage  price  of  butternut  is  determined  by  the  value  of 
black  walnut  for  which  it  is  a  cheaper  substitute.  The  latter  has 
long  held  the  position  of  our  most  valuable  tree  species,  the 
average  stumpage  price  according  to  the  1900  Census  being  $5. 
Butternut  would  not  bring  more  than  half  that  price.  Both 
species  find  their  highest  use  in  the  furniture  trade  where  mill 
run  butternut  commanded  a  value  of  $35  per  M  f.o.b.  the  wood- 
working establishment  in  19 14.  Its  logging  is  comparatively 
expensive  because  it  does  not  occur  in  pure  stands  but  scattered 
here  and  there  on  deep  soiled  fertile  spots.  Hence  the  actual 
cost  of  getting  the  logs  from  the  stump  to  the  mill  and  turning  out 
boards  was  seldom  less  than  $10  per  M.  Subtracting  this 
amount  plus  a  margin  of  $5  per  M  for  freight  and  miscellaneous 
charges  from  the  average  sale  value  left  a  maximum  stumpage 
price  of  $20  per  M. 

Hickory  is  another  species  which  is  very  valuable  to  a  certain 
class  of  woodworkers  but  which  is  often  left  to  rot  in  the  woods 
because  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  it  to  the  user  in  the  form  which 
he  demands.  Hickory  commanded  an  average  stumpage  price 
of  $6.69  per  M  in  1900  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  is  the  best  handle 
and  spoke  material  in  the  world.     For  the  selected  boards  which 


TIMBER  VALUATION  43 

they  use  the  manufacturers  paid  $50  per  M  but  these  had  to  be 
at  least  eight  inches  wide  and  free  from  red  heartwood.  The 
weight,  hardness  and  high  percentage  of  defect  are  responsible  for 
decreasing  the  stumpage  price  of  this  valuable  wood.  All  three 
factors  mean  a  high  cost  of  logging  which  is  still  further  increased 
by  the  scattered  way  in  which  hickory  occurs.  Consequently  it 
was  seldom  possible  to  log  and  mill  hickory  for  less  than  $12  per 
M  and  even  then  not  more  than  50  per  cent  of  what  would  ordi- 
narily be  considered  merchantable  was  put  into  lumber.  Hence 
the  largest  stumpage  price  that  can  be  expected  for  even  acces- 
sible timber  is  $10  per  M  and  the  average  is  under  $5. 

Some  willow  and  alder  occur  in  this  type  along  the  stream 
courses.  Barring  the  use  of  the  former  for  willow  rods,  which  is 
more  of  an  agricultural  than  forest  use,  the  highest  returns  can 
be  secured  by  converting  the  wood  into  charcoal  for  black  pow- 
der. The  wholesale  price  for  charcoal  was  50  cents  per  bushel 
(191 6)  and  one  cord  of  four-foot  wood  made  20  bushels  of  char- 
coal, the  cost  of  which,  including  burning,  was  usually  figured  at 
50  cents  per  cord.  Hence  there  may  be,  under  favorable  circum- 
stances, a  margin  of  over  $9  per  cord  in  handling  willow  and  alder 
charcoal.  But,  unfortunately,  the  demand  is  so  localized  that 
there  are  only  a  few  places  where  charcoal  can  be  sold.  These 
species  are,  therefore,  seldom  reckoned  as  an  asset. 

Beech  has  already  been  discussed  in  the  hardwood  t>'pe.  Like- 
wise there  are  only  two  species  of  birch  which  need  further  elabo- 
ration, the  gray  birch  and  the  black  or  cherry  birch.  The  former 
is  a  small  species  which  is  utilized  locally.  Close  to  spool  or 
bobbin  mills,  or  a  good  market  for  cordwood,  it  can  be  sold  for 
$1  to  $2  a  cord  on  the  stump  while  four-foot  wood  at  least  three 
inches  at  the  top  end  inside  the  bark  brought  $3  to  $5  per  cord 
delivered  in  191 5.  The  cost  of  cutting  and  stacking  was  seldom 
greater  than  $1 .50  if  the  tops  were  not  piled.  Hauling  varied  with 
the  distance;  on  a  good  road  a  pair  of  horses  should  haul  a  cord 
without  difficulty.  Summing  up,  gray  birch  is  only  an  asset  in 
the  most  accessible  localities  and  does  not  bring  more  than  $3  a 
cord  stumpage  even  there.  It  is,  however,  often  a  detriment  to 
a  tract  of  white  pine  because  its  rapid  growth  enables  it  to  over- 


44  WHITE   PINE  TYPE 

top  the  pine  and  whip  off  the  buds  and  leaves  of  the  upper 
branches  when  there  is  much  wind  stirring.  Furthermore,  a 
mixed  stand  of  gray  birch  and  pine  furnishes  ideal  conditions  for 
the  spread  of  gypsy  moths.  Hence  it  is  generally  worth  while 
to  cut  it  out  of  immature  pine  stands  even  if  the  cost  of  removal 
exceeds  its  value  as  cordwood. 

Black  birch  is  an  entirely  different  species.  It  reaches  large 
size,  so  that  its  wood  can  be  used  for  all  purposes  to  which  yellow 
birch  is  put,  but  it  also  has  a  special  value  of  its  own  for  furni- 
ture. The  dark  heartwood  is  most  highly  esteemed  for  this  pur- 
pose and  commanded  a  price  of  $50  per  M  at  the  woodworking 
establishments  in  1914.  Its  stumpage  value  is  also  high,  $5,  as 
the  Forest  Service  figures  for  1907  show.  This  is  true  in  spite  of 
the  high  cost  of  logging  due  to  the  impossibility  of  finding  this 
species  in  pure  stands. 

Yellow  birch  has  already  been  fully  discussed  under  the  hard- 
wood type. 

Oak  is  the  only  native  hardwood  which  cuts  an  appreciable 
figure  in  the  total  lumber  cut  of  the  United  States.  It  ranks,  in 
fact,  third,  but  even  then  only  makes  up  8  per  cent  of  the  total. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  an  important  group  of  species  for  which  the 
stumpage  price  ranged  in  1900  from  $1  to  $6  with  an  average  of 
$3  for  the  United  States  as  a  whole.  Its  main  uses  are  for  furni- 
ture and  cooperage  altho  it  meets  a  multitude  of  other  demands 
where  strength,  beauty  and  durability  are  factors.  Thirty-eight 
per  cent  of  all  the  lumber  used  in  the  United  States  for  furniture 
and  fixtures  is  oak  while  it  furnishes  80  per  cent  of  all  the  tight 
barrel  staves  and  a  high  percentage  of  the  slack  staves.  Still 
another  important  use  is  for  cross  ties,  44  per  cent  of  the  country's 
annual  output  being  from  this  genus  alone. 

High  grade  furniture  oak,  especially  that  which  is  to  be  quar- 
tered, has  the  most  stringent  specifications.  The  logs  must  be 
of  large  size,  at  least  10  inches  in  diameter  inside  the  bark  at  the 
top  end,  and  free  from  all  defects.  Plain  oak  furniture  stock  is 
only  sHghtly  less  perfect.  For  tight  cooperage  staves  perfect  logs 
must  be  employed  but  on  account  of  the  short  lengths  used  the 
utilization  can  be  somewhat  closer  than  for  furniture  lumber. 


TIMBER   VALUATION  45 

Slack  Staves  need  not,  of  course,  be  made  from  such  valuable  trees 
but  still  very  few  defects  are  allowable.  Into  railroad  ties  may 
be  thrown  any  sound  oak  which  will  give  a  seven-inch  face,  eight 
feet  long,  and  be  at  least  six  inches  thick.  This  is  the  standard 
for  a  No.  3  railroad  tie.  No.  i  ties  must  have  a  nine-inch  face 
and  be  seven  inches  thick  and  sold  for  about  75  cents  each  or 
about  S20  per  M  in  1915.  They  are  usually  worth  100  per  cent 
more  than  No.  3  ties  so  that  it  pays  better  to  put  anything  but 
No.  I  and  No.  2  tie  material  into  cordwood  where  oak  firewood 
brings  $8  or  more  per  cord. 

Oak  seldom  occurs  in  pure  stands  in  this  type  so  its  logging 
and  manufacture  are  comparatively  expensive  from  all  points  of 
view,  hardness,  weight,  and  scattered  location  of  the  trees. 

Average  costs  were  as  follows  in  T914: 

PerM 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  50 

Skidding 2 .  00 

Hauling 2 .  00 

Milling 3.00 

Marketing i .  00 

$9-5° 

The  manufacture  of  quartered  oak  cost  even  more  because  of  the 
many  logs  which  must  be  rejected  and  the  extra  care  needed  in 
sawing.  Tie  making  cost  10  to  15  cents  per  tie,  or  S4  to  $6  per 
M,  to  which  must  be  added  the  cost  of  hauling  the  ties  to  the  rail- 
road. Cordwood  cutting  could  be  contracted  for  $1.50  to  $2 
per  cord  or  $3  to  $4  per  M  while  dehvery  usually  cost  about  $2 
per  cord  more.  Summing  up,  a  tract  of  oak  lumber  may  bring 
a  stumpage  price  of  $3  to  $15  per  M  to  which  may  be  added 
$4  more,  if  ties  and  cordwood  can  be  made  out  of  the  tops  and 
small  trees. 

Elm  is  an  unimportant  hardwood  which  occurs  sparingly  in 
this  type.  Its  average  stumpage  price,  S3  per  M,  1900  census, 
is  low  for  accessible  timber  even  tho  it  can  only  be  employed 
successfully  for  certain  special  uses.  It  is  a  fairly  hard,  fairly 
heavy  wood  which  is  not  durable  and  is  most  valuable  for  vehicle 
stock  where  its  toughness  commends  it  for  such  purposes  as 


46  WHITE   PINE  TYPE 

hubs.  It  is  also  somewhat  used  for  boxes  and  crates  and  for 
furniture  parts  which  will  not  be  seen  such  as  drawer  backs. 
All  the  species  are  thrown  together  commercially,  but  white  and 
rock  elm  make  up  80  per  cent  of  the  total  cut  in  the  United  States. 
Of  these  two,  rock  elm  is  the  tougher  but  does  not  reach  such  large 
size.  An  average  sale  value  at  the  woodworking  plant  for  elm 
lumber  was  $30  per  M  in  19 14  but  this  must  be  wdde,  selected 
stock.  The  logging  and  milling  are  expensive  and  could  seldom 
be  handled  for  less  than  $10  per  M.  Close  to  centers  of  popula- 
tion the  cordwood  in  the  tops  and  small  trees  could  be  marketed 
for  about  $4  per  cord  so  that  there  was  a  possibility  of  increasing 
the  gross  jdeld  per  tree  by  that  much,  there  being  at  least  a  cord 
of  wood  in  the  limbs  and  tops  to  the  thousand  feet  of  lumber. 
Hence  the  largest  possible  gross  returns  that  could  be  expected 
were  $34  per  M.  From  this  should  be  deducted  $10  for  logging 
and  milling,  a  variable  amount  for  freight  and  $2  to  $3  for  cord- 
wood  making  and  delivering.  This  left  a  possible  margin  for 
stumpage  and  profit  of  about  $15  per  M.  In  spite  of  increased 
sale  values  there  has  been  no  increase  in  this  margin  because 
operating  costs  have  grown  at  the  same  or  a  greater  ratio. 

Land  Values, —  Land  values  within  the  white  pine  type  are 
difhcult  to  determine  accurately  for  two  reasons.  First,  there 
is  the  cause  already  referred  to  in  the  spruce  and  hardwood  types, 
that  the  land  is  seldom  appraised  separately  from  the  timber. 
This,  however,  only  holds  in  the  case  of  large  tracts  like  those  in 
northern  Michigan.  In  the  woodlot  region  another  reason 
obtains.  There,  farms  are  sold  as  a  whole  and  it  is  difficult  to 
separate  the  values  of  the  tillable  land,  the  buildings  and  the 
woodland.  Nevertheless,  the  land  has  a  tangible  value  which 
may  be  closely  approximated  by  using  the  prices  at  which  pasture 
is  held.  Much  of  this  class  of  land  has  been  allowed  to  grow  up 
to  woods  so  that  it  now  makes  up  at  least,  one-third  of  the  present 
woodlot  area  in  the  older  sections  hke  New  England.  Pastures 
of  the  rough,  stony  type  which  have  been  allowed  to  revert  to 
woodland  are  appraised  at  $5  to  $15  per  acre  and  these  figures 
may  be  taken  as  representative  of  the  better  kinds  of  white  pine 
land  in  the  woodlot  region. 


TITLES  47 

Productively,  too,  their  value  is  much  the  same.  On  a  rota- 
tion of  loo  years,  with  interest  at  3  per  cent,  cost  of  restocking, 
$10,  annual  charges,  50  cents,  and  a  final  jield  of  50M  board  feet 
worth  $10  per  M  the  land  has  a  productive  value  of  $7  per  acre. 
This  is  conservative  because  a  yield  of  50M  per  acre  should  be 
obtainable  -without  thinning  on  poor  quality  soil. 

Titles.—  The  form  of  lots  within  the  white  pine  type  differs 
radically  in  the  two  main  regions  where  this  type  occurs.  In 
the  woodlot  section  of  New  England  and  New  York  the  lots  are 
parts  of  the  farms  and  hence  may  take  any  shape.  Ordinarily, 
too,  they  are  in  small  units  of  50  acres  or  less.  Hence,  the  title 
question  is  always  a  difiicult  one.  The  lots  are  difficult  to  locate 
on  the  ground  and  still  more  troublesome  in  tracing  claims  of 
titles.  Oftentimes  it  is  necessary  to  purchase  a  whole  farm  with 
its  arable  land  and  buildings  in  order  to  get  undisputed  posses- 
sion to  a  piece  of  timber.  In  the  Lake  States,  however,  the 
situation  is  entirely  different.  There  the  township  surveys  apply 
and  the  subdivision  of  a  property  into  40-acre  units  is  com- 
paratively simple.  Furthermore,  the  land  has  little  value  for 
farming  and  has  never  been  divided  into  small  holdings.  The 
large  lumber  companies  took  possession  directly  from  the  State 
or  United  States  and  there  have  been  few  transfers  since.  Loca- 
tion and  title  searching  in  the  Lake  States  white  pine  region  is  an 
entirely  different  problem  from  that  which  confronts  one  in  the 
farm  woodlot  section. 


CHAPTER  rV 
SWAMP  TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  This  type  is  a  comparatively  unim- 
portant one  which  occurs  scattered  here  and  there  among  the 
three  preceding  t3rpes.  It  is  all  north  of  Mason  and  Dixon's 
line  and  east  of  the  Great  Plains.  In  other  words  it  is  confined 
to  the  glaciated  regions.  In  fact  the  low  lying  sites  in  which  it 
occurs  are  in  many  cases  directly  due  to  glaciation.  Beaver 
dams  are  also  a  cause  for  the  poor  drainage  which  leads  to  the 
occurrence  of  this  type.  On  account  of  the  small  extent  and 
localized  occurrence  of  this  type  it  is  impossible  to  give  its  occur- 
rence by  states  and  counties.  It  is  only  possible  to  say  in  general 
terms  where  it  may  occur. 

The  climate  of  the  type  varies,  of  course,  with  the  altitude  and 
latitude  but  in  general  it  may  be  said  that  the  growing  season  is 
shorter  than  on  the  surrounding  upland  because  of  the  poor  air 
drainage.  Swamps  are  more  subject  to  late  and  early  frosts  for 
this  reason.  While  the  precipitation  is  the  same  as  that  of  the 
surrounding  country  the  available  moisture  is  greater  because  of 
the  slow  runoff  and  retarded  evaporation.  In  fact  there  is  too 
much  water  in  the  soil  for  rapid  plant  growth. 

The  height  at  which  water  stands  has  the  same  effect  on  root 
development  that  a  layer  of  hard  pan  would  have.  The  roots 
cannot  reach  down  but  must  spread  out.  Furthermore,  a  fre- 
quent cause  of  swampy  conditions  is  an  impervious  soil  whether 
it  be  hard  pan  or  clay.  Consequently  the  soil  conditions  may 
safely  be  said  to  be  very  poor  for  tree  growth.  Because  the 
roots  cannot  go  down,  the  tree  cannot  grow  tall  and  diameter 
growth  is  minimized  by  the  short  growing  seasons. 

The  species  which  can  endure  such  untoward  conditions  are 
comparatively  few.  They  must  be  shallow  rooted  and  frost  hardy. 
Arbor  vitae,  southern  white  cedar,  tamarack,  spruce,  balsam, 
and  red  maple  are  the  commonest.     Usually  they  occur  in  more 

48 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


49 


or  less  pure  stands  so  that  the  subtypes  are  easy  to  distinguish. 
The  reasons  for  differences  in  composition  are  not  always  clear. 
Lumbering,  however,  usually  favors  the  light  seeded  species  like 
red  maple,  spruce  and  balsam  at  the  expense  of  the  cedars.  Con- 
sequently, a  cedar  swamp  seldom  comes  up  to  cedar  again  when 
the  poles  and  posts  have  been  cut  out. 

In  spite  of  the  poor  growth  conditions  insects  and  fungi  ordi- 
narDy  do  very  little  damage  in  the  swamp  type.  The  most 
notable  exception  to  this  general  statement  is  the  damage  done 
to  tamarack  by  the  larch  sawfly  in  the  early  8o's.  Nearly  all 
the  larger  trees  were  killed  over  wide  areas.  Butt  rot — Trametes 
pini  and  Polyporus  schweinitzii  —  occurs  on  all  the  coniferous 
species  found  in  this  t>'pe.  While  fire  is  very  destructive  when  it 
does  get  into  the  type  the  wetness  of  the  soil  prevents  this  form 
of  damage  except  in  very  dry  seasons.  But  in  droughts  swamp 
fires  do  occasionally  occur  and  are  very  difficult  to  extinguish 
because  they  burn  down  into  the  accumulated  duff  and  peat  and 
may  smoulder  for  days  only  to  break  out  anew  in  fresh  places. 

The  unfavorable  growth  conditions  have  already  been  referred 
to  so  that  it  is  merely  necessary  to  add  that  a  swamp  cannot  be 
expected  to  produce  more  than  one-half  what  the  spruce  and  hard- 
wood types  will  yield  in  the  same  tune  and  one-fifth  the  returns 
from  good  white  pine  soil.  This  is  because  the  trees  are  shorter 
and  smaller,  not  because  they  do  not  stand  close  enough  together. 
Average  diameter  and  height  growth  figures  are  as  follows: 


25  years 

50  years 

75  years 

100  years 


dbh. 
2  inches 
5  inches 

7  inches 

8  inches 


dbh. 

1  inch      10  feet 

2  inches  15  feet 
4  inches  23  feet 
6  inches  32  feet 


Spruce 


I  inch       7  feet 

3  inches  14  feet 

4  inches  26  feet 


Timber  Valuation. —  Estimates  of  this  type  present  only  one 
difficulty,  the  swampy  ground.  Hence  winter  is  the  best  time 
to  work  in  them.  The  small  size  of  the  type  usually  necessitates 
a  high  percentage  estimate  but  to  offset  this  the  stands  are  usually 


50  SWAMP  TYPE 

uniform  in  composition  and  size  so  that  a  20  per  cent  estimate  is 
commonly  accurate  enough.  The  cost  should  not  exceed  15 
cents  an  acre. 

The  stumpage  value  of  all  the  swamp  tree  species  has  been  so 
low  that  it  is  only  recently  that  data  has  been  gathered  in  regard 
to  them.  Cedar  is  the  only  species  on  which  the  Forest  Service 
has  figures.  Its  stumpage  rose  from  $1.32  to  $4.63  between  1900 
and  1907,  an  increase  of  250  per  cent  while  the  lumber  only 
advanced  75  per  cent  during  the  same  period,  from  $10.91  to 
$19.14.  Even  these  figures  cannot  be  taken  as  representative  of 
the  swamp  cedars  alone  because  several  western  species  and  the 
southern  red  cedar  are  included  under  the  same  name  in  the  Cen- 
sus and  Forest  Service  reports.  Hence  it  is  all  the  more  impor- 
tant to  present  data  from  which  the  stumpage  value  of  each 
individual  tract  may  be  worked  out. 

The  most  valuable  products  obtained  from  the  swamps  are 
cedar  and  tamarack  poles,  ties  and  posts.  The  orices  of  these 
on  the  cars  were  as  follows  in  1916: 

Each 

Cedar  poles $o .  5o-$40 .  oo 

ties o .  50 

posts 0.35 

Tamarack  poles o .  50-  10 .  00 

ties 0.50 

posts 0.30 

Spruce  and  balsam  seldom  get  large  enough  for  more  than 
pulpwood,  the  specifications  and  prices  for  which  are  discussed 
in  the  chapter  on  the  Spruce  Type. 

Red  maple  cordwood  brought  a  price  of  $5  in  four-foot  lengths 
in  191 5  where  the  market  was  good. 

The  minimum  sizes  required  are  as  follows: 

Poles  —  20  feet  long  and  4  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  end. 
Ties  —  8  feet  long,  6-inch  face  and  6  inches  thick. 
Posts  —  8  feet  long  and  3  inches  in  diameter  at  the  top  end. 
Cordwood  —  4  feet  long  and  2  inches  in  diameter  at  the  small  end. 

Logging  and  manufacturing  costs  in  191 6  may  be  summarized 
as  follows: 


TITLES  51 

Per  lineal  foot 

Poles  —  cutting  and  peeling $0.02 

hauling  10  miles o .  02 

Total $0. 04 

or  $1  for  a  2  5 -foot  pole. 

Ties  —  cutting,  hacking  and  peeling $0.10 

hauling  5  miles o .  20 

Total $0.30 

Posts  —  cutting $0 .  03 

hauling  5  miles o  05 

Total $0.08 

Deducting  these  costs  from  the  sale  values  given  above  it  is 
clear  that  it  is  possible  to  have  margins  for  stumpage  and  profits 
as  follows: 

Each 

Poles $1 .  oo-$3 .  00 

Ties o.  20 

Posts o.  22 

To  put  this  on  a  board  foot  basis  it  will  be  necessary  to  assume 
certain  equivalents.  For  poles  a  conservative  converting  factor 
is  50  board  feet  for  a  25-foot,  7-inch  pole.  There  are  more  than 
25  board  feet  in  a  tie  eight  feet  by  six  inches  by  seven  inches. 
A  post  eight  feet  by  four  inches  in  diameter  contains  approxi- 
mately 10  board  feet.  Hence  poles  may  yield  a  stumpage  price 
of  $10  to  $20  per  M,  ties  $5  to  $8  and  posts  $15  to  $20.  The 
average  figures  are,  of  course,  much  lower  than  this  on  account 
of  long  hauls,  poor  markets,  and  bad  management.  No  figures  of 
costs  in  man  hours  and  horse  hours  exist  for  this  type. 

Land  Values. —  Land  values  are  low  for  this  type  because  it 
yields  little  in  timber  and  needs  expensive  drainage  before  it  can 
be  made  arable.  Hence  it  has  little  or  no  value  unless  it  can  be 
drained  and  turned  into  celery  beds  or  flooded  for  cranberry 
growing. 

Titles. —  Title  problems  have  already  been  discussed  for  the 
hardwood  and  white  pine  types  so  that  no  further  remarks  are 
necessary  for  this  t>T3e  since  it  does  not  differ  from  the  surround- 
ing upland  in  title  history. 


CHAPTER  V 
SOUTHEASTERN  PINE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  This  region  Kes  along  the  Atlantic  sea- 
board from  southern  New  Jersey  to  Central  Texas.  It  is  made 
up  of  low  lying,  comparatively  level  sandy  lands  which  seldom 
rise  more  than  500  feet  above  sea  level.  It  is  part  of  what 
geologists  call  the  Coastal  Plain.  Between  it  and  the  southern 
bottomlands  there  is  no  hard  and  fast  Hne.  The  difference 
between  the  two  is  simply  one  of  soil  drainage  and  fertility.  With 
the  southern  hardwood  belt,  however,  there  is  a  sharper  contrast. 
The  pines  quickly  give  place  to  the  hardwoods  as  the  hills  of  the 
Piedmont  plateau  with  their  stiff  clay  soil  rise  from  the  sandy 
coastal  plain. 

The  climate  is  like  that  of  the  bottomlands,  hot  and  moist. 
The  winters  are  short.  Scarcely  a  single  month  during  the  year 
has  an  average  temperature  below  freezing  even  in  the  northern 
extension  of  the  region.  The  precipitation  is  heavy,  over  45 
inches,  and  has  a  distinct  period  of  maximum  fall  during  mid- 
summer. The  evaporation  is  naturally  great  with  the  high  aver- 
age temperature.  Runoff  would  also  be  rapid  were  it  not  for  the 
gentle  slopes  but  this  is  offset  in  part  at  least  by  the  openness  of 
the  sandy  soil.  Taking  all  the  factors  into  consideration  the 
climate  may  not  be  said  to  be  especially  favorable  to  tree  growth. 
The  evaporation  and  runoff  affect  the  heavy  precipitation  so 
that  there  is  frequently  a  deficiency  of  soil  moisture.  This  is 
reflected  in  the  openness  of  the  stands  and  the  adaptations  of  the 
foliage  to  prevent  excessive  transpiration. 

The  topography  has  already  been  described  in  a  general  way 
and  there  is  little  that  needs  to  be  added.  It  does  not  present 
local  variations  but  is  remarkably  uniform.  Extending  from  the 
low  sand  dunes  of  the  coast  west  to  the  foothills  of  the  Piedmont 
Plateau,  the  Coastal  Plain  is  described  by  its  name.  It  is  a  plain 
without  marked  elevations  or  depressions.  The  soil  is  likewise 
remarkably  homogeneous  in  its  sandy  character  altho  there  is  a 

52 


GENERAL  CONDITIONS 


53 


tendency  for  it  to  have  less  pure  sand  on  the  northern  edge  of  the 
Coastal  Plain  where  much  material  has  been  brought  by  the 
streams  from  the  pile  of  glacial  debris  to  the  north. 


Fig.  5.     Distribution  of  the  Southern  Pine  T.vpe 

might  be  expected  from  the  cUmatic  and  soil  conditions  the 
predominating  tree  species  are  ones  which  can  stand  a  relatively 
small  amount  of  available  soil  moisture.  The  longleaf  pine  was 
originally  the  most  abundant  species  but  lumbering  and  fire  have 


54  SOUTHEASTERN  PINE  TYPE 

in  many  places  made  it  second  in  importance  to  its  more  vigorous 
competitor,  loblolly  pine  (Pinus  taeda  L.).  Shortleaf,  pond, 
Cuban,  pitch  and  scrub  pine  are  also  found  within  this  type  but 
seldom  in  pure  stands  over  large  areas  like  the  longleaf  and 
loblolly  pines. 

In  determining  the  distribution  of  tne  stands  lumbering,  fire 
and  agriculture  are  the  controlling  factors.  Virgin  timber  is 
almost  invariably  pure  longleaf  pine.  Areas  which  have  been 
logged  and  burnt  may  be  either  longleaf  or  loblolly  but  usually 
the  latter  species  is  more  abundant.  Where  the  land  has  been 
cleared  for  tillage,  various  species  may  take  possession  depending 
upon  the  latitude  and  the  degree  of  soil  exhaustion.  In  the  north- 
ern part  of  the  Coastal  Plain  in  New  Jersey,  Delaware  and 
Virginia  scrub  pine  is  generally  the  first  invader  on  abandoned 
fields  with  pitch  pine  occurring  only  on  the  poorest  portions. 
From  Virginia  to  South  Carohna  loblolly  pine  plays  the  role  of 
soil  reclaimer  while  farther  south  slash  or  Cuban  pine  gives 
promise  of  becoming  an  important  source  of  revenue  on  worn  out 
lands,  and  those  from  which  long  leaf  pine  has  been  cut. 

Were  fire  kept  out  of  the  southern  pine  region  the  damage 
would  become  negligible.  Unfortunately,  however,  there  are 
many  reasons  why  the  practice  of  annual  burning  has  become  the 
rule.  First  of  all  there  is  the  argument  that  the  grazing  is  im- 
proved by  burning  out  the  old  grass  every  spring.  Then,  too, 
the  turpentine  hackers  Hke  to  burn  in  order  to  discourage  the 
snakes.  So  potent  are  these  arguments  with  the  natives  that  the 
owners  of  turpentine  orchards  have  adopted  the  practice  of 
burning  around  their  tapped  trees  after  the  inflammable  debris 
has  been  raked  away  from  the  base  in  order  to  protect  them  from 
fire.  Nor  can  this  usage  be  condemned  under  present  conditions. 
As  long  as  fires  are  allowed  to  burn  unchecked  it  is  better  to  burn 
lightly  annually  making  provision  for  the  protection  of  the  tapped 
trees  than  to  allow  the  debris  to  accumulate  around  the  bases  of 
the  trees  to  such  an  extent  that  the  tree  is  sure  to  be  burnt  thru 
in  case  of  fire. 

Freedom  from  fires  will  only  come  as  a  result  of  a  long  cam- 
paign of  public  education.     Yet  it  is  easy  to  show  that  the  small 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


55 


amount  of  good  done  in  "  improving  "  the  grass  and  killing 
snakes  is  offset  many  times  by  the  loss  in  soil  fertility,  small 
trees  and  mature  timber.  Furthermore,  in  addition  to  these 
direct  losses  a  large  amount  of  indirect  damage  can  be  charged  to 
burning  because  it  makes  the  trees  more  susceptible  to  fungus  and 
insect  attack. 

Annually  the  red  rot  fungus  —  Trametes  pini  —  causes 
thousands  of  dollars'  worth  of  damage  to  living  trees.  Special 
care  should  be  taken  to  see  that  a  tract  of  timber  is  not  infested 
with  it  because  it  works  rapidly  and  thoroughly. 

Another  common  result  of  unrestricted  burning  is  a  serious 
infestation  of  pine  bark  beetles  —  Dendroctonus  pinicola.  This 
insect,  if  unchecked,  is  capable  of  kilKng  large  amounts  of  other- 
wise healthy  timber  as  numerous  areas  in  the  southeast  show. 

Other  forms  of  damage  are  not  serious.  Snow-break  does  not 
occur  in  the  warm  climate  of  the  pine  belt  nor  does  lightning 
damage  more  than  an  occasional  tree.  Hurricanes  may  snap 
off  all  the  large  trees  in  their  path  but  fortunately  they  seldom 
cover  large  areas. 

Stands  per  acre  under  virgin  conditions,  which  nearly  always 
means  pure  stands  of  longleaf  pine,  range  from  20,000  board  feet 
to  5000  board  feet  with  10,000  board  feet  as  a  high  average  for 
large  tracts.  '  Second  growth  stands  vary  in  volume  directly  with 
the  age  so  that  their  possibilities  may  best  be  obtained  from  the 
following  growth  figures.  Yields  per  acre  in  cubic  feet  may  be 
converted  into  board  feet  by  multiplying  by  seven. 


OPTIMUM   GROWTH 


Diameter 

Height 

Density 

Yield  per  acre 
in  cubic  feet 

50 
years 

100 
years 

50 
years 

100 
years 

50 
years 

100 
years 

50 
years 

100 
years 

Longleaf  pine 

Loblolly  pine 

Slash  pine 

Scrub  pine 

ins. 

7 
16 
16 

ins. 

13 

24 

.... 

deg. 

65 
85 

63 

deg. 

95 
no 

200 
150 
370 

100 

7125 
7500 
4650 

9000 

56  SOUTHEASTERN  PINE  TYPE 

Timber  Valuation.  —  On  the  whole  estimating  in  southern 
pine  is  simple  and  comparatively  inexpensive.  A  strip  estimate 
covering  15  per  cent  ought  not  to  cost  more  than  eight  cents  per 
acre.  This  is  because  the  surface  is  level,  the  stands  are  not 
dense,  there  are  few  species,  and  the  trees  are  generally  of  about 
the  same  size  and  quality.  This  uniformity  means  that  only  a 
small  percent  of  the  total  area  need  be  actually  covered  in  the 
estimate.  Hence  large  tracts  will  give  good  results  with  a  5  per 
cent  estimate,  while  a  tract  has  to  be  less  than  30  acres  in  extent 
to  justify  a  50  per  cent  estimate.  In  fact  the  only  factor  that  is 
liable  to  cause  difficulty  in  estimating  is  the  boundary  Hues  and 
even  this  source  of  possible  error  is  not  present  except  in  one  of 
the  original  thirteen  states.  Unfortunately  the  rectangular  sys- 
tem of  land  surveys  was  not  used  by  the- colonists  so  that  the 
property  Hues  do  not  run  in  a  uniform  manner  but  form  an  intri- 
cate maze  of  lines  which  is  often  very  difficult  to  unsnarl.  Where 
such  conditions  exist  the  cost  of  appraising  the  timber  is  pro- 
portionately more  expensive. 

The  Hmits  of  merchantabiHty  are  commonly  uniform  because 
the  purposes  to  which  the  timber  is  devoted  do  not  vary  greatly 
from  region  to  region.  It  is  usual  to  convert  the  bole  into  logs 
up  to  a  top  diameter  inside  the  bark  of  not  less  than  five  inches. 
Of  course  where  there  are  large  limbs  to  interfere  with  the  clear 
length  there  are  fewer  logs  and  the  top  diameter  is  greater.  Tops 
and  limbs  may  be  used  for  firewood  or  even  pulp  where  there  are 
favorable  market  conditions.  Rarely  there  is  a  demand  for  the 
stimips  in  destructive  distillation  plants  which  secure  turpentine 
and  its  by-products  in  this  way. 

The  remarks  concerning  estimating  which  have  gone  before 
apply  merely  to  the  estimating  of  timber  for  lumber  and  cord- 
wood.  With  longleaf  and  slash  pine  turpentine  is  frequently  the 
more  important  product  so  that  every  southern  timber  cruiser 
should  be  able  to  estimate  the  number  of  "  cups  "  or  "  boxes  " 
that  a  tract  of  pine  will  yield.  This  is  determined  by  counting 
the  number  of  cups  or  boxes  which  can  be  placed  on  a  given 
sample  area  which  is  representative  of  average  conditions  within 
the  tract.     As  with  ordinary  estimating  it  is  better  to  take  this 


TIMBER   VALUATION  57 

sample  area  in  the  form  of  a  strip  rather  than  in  isolated  plots 
because  a  better  average  is  obtained.  The  smallest  size  tree 
which  can  be  cupped  is  six  inches  dbh.,  but  it  is  far  better  practice 
to  bleed  no  trees  less  than  10  inches.  For  boxes  the  tree  must  be 
at  least  1 2  inches  dbh.  because  boxing  naturally  injures  the  tree 
more  and  it  must  therefore  be  sturdier  to  stand  up.  With  both 
r^upping  and  boxing  only  one  face  is  possible  on  trees  of  the 
minimum  diameters.  Those  between  18  and  24  inches  will  stand 
two  faces.  Larger  trees  will  stand  three  or  even  four  faces  but 
care  must  be  taken  not  to  girdle  the  tree  or  weaken  it  so  much 
that  it  will  break  oflf  easily.  In  virgin  timber  the  number  of 
cups  or  boxes  varies  from  35  to  50  per  acre  with  an  average  of  40. 
Ten  thousand  five  hundred  boxes  or  cups  make  up  a  "  crop  " 
which  includes  an  area  of  200  to  250  acres  in  virgin  timber. 
Where  the  timber  has  been  boxed,  areas  of  500  to  1600  acres  are 
necessary  to  yield  the  requisite  number  of  cups  for  a  crop. 

For  the  important  species  in  this  type  no  separate  stumpage 
prices  are  available.  The  figures  given  below  are  for  "  southern 
pine":  — 

Per  M 

1880 $0.05 

1890 0.30 

1900 0-75 

I9I0 3.00 

1920 S  .00 

These  are,  of  course,  merely  averages  and  do  not  indicate  the 
possible  ranges.  Generally  speaking  pine  stumpage  is  more  val- 
uable in  the  north  than  in  the  south.  Accordingly  one  may 
expect  to  have  to  pay  twice  as  much  for  the  same  grade  of  timber 
in  North  Carolina  as  in  Texas.  This  is,  of  course,  merely  a  reflec- 
tion of  the  difference  in  freight  rates  and  the  length  of  haul  to 
the  mill. 

As  far  as  uses  are  concerned  there  is  little  difference  between  the 
different  parts  of  the  pine  belt.  Dimension  —  house  frames, 
bridge  timbers  and  railway  ties  —  and  rough  construction  lum- 
ber take  the  bulk  of  the  annual  cut.  Only  the  clearest  and  best 
goes  into  flooring  and  finishing  lumber.  Between  species  little 
distinction  is  made  ordinarily,  longleaf,  slash,  shortleaf  and  lob- 


58  SOUTHEASTERN   PINE   TYPE 

lolly  all  being  sold  under  the  general  caption  of  "  southern  pine." 
However,  since  there  is  a  marked  difference  in  durabihty  great 
care  must  be  taken  to  get  longleaf  and  shortleaf  where  the 
lumber  must  be  placed  in  contact  with  the  ground  or  used  for 
wharfing  or  pihng.  It  has  been  necessary  to  devise  a  system 
of  grading  which  will  segregate  the  more  durable  species.  This 
was  accompUshed  by  separating  the  lumber  according  to  the 
number  of  annual  rings  per  inch  that  appeared  on  the  end  of  the 
board  or  the  cross  section  of  the  log.  The  explanation  of  this 
apparently  arbitrary  system  of  grading  is  that  the  less  durable 
species  Hke  loblolly  pine  are  much  faster  growing  than  the  more 
durable  longleaf  or  shortleaf.  Therefore,  a  board,  a  plank,  or  ? 
pile  with  relatively  few  rings  per  inch  can  be  thrown  out  imme- 
diately  where  durabihty  is  a  factor. 

The  prices  received  at  the  mill  for  high  grade  frames  or  bridge 
timbers  are  not  high  absolutely,  $30  to  $40  per  M,  but  relatively  a 
fair  value  because  there  is  less  sawing  required  than  with  one-inch 
boards  and  no  planing.  Even  flooring  or  inside  finish  seldom 
brings  more  than  $75  per  M  f.o.b.  the  mill  and  it  never  makes  up 
more  than  20  per  cent  of  the  scale  of  the  logs  sawn  up.  The  tops 
and  mill  waste  can  occasionally  be  marketed  locally  for  $4.00  to 
$6  per  cord.  Hence  an  average  value  of  $50  per  M  at  the  mill 
is  very  good  indeed. 

From  this  sale  value  milling  and  logging  costs  must  be  deducted 
to  determine  the  stumpage  value  of  any  particular  piece  of 
timber.  For  running  thru  the  saw  mill  exclusive  of  planing, 
kihi  drying  and  selling  $3  to  $3.50  per  M  is  a  good  average  figure 
for  large  permanent  mills  equipped  to  saw  high  grade  lumber. 
Smaller  mills  will  do  it  for  as  low  as  $2  per  M  but  their  average 
product  is  usually  less  well  manufactured. 

Logging  costs  vary  little  thruout  the  pine  belt.  The  topog- 
raphy is  uniform,  labor  varies  Httle  and  methods  are  standardized. 
The  logs  are  brought  from  the  woods  to  the  railroad  with  big 
wheels  and  then  shipped  into  the  mill.  Occasionally  a  portable 
mill  is  set  up  in  the  timber  or  a  stream  is  employed  for  driving 
but  the  rule  is  the  large  mill  fed  by  its  logging  railroad.    The 


LAND   VALUES  59 

following  figures  are  typical  of  the  average  operation  under  the 
conditions  in  19 14: 

PerM 

Felling  and  bucking So .  75 

Hauling  to  railway 3  •  00 

Railway  freight 3  •  00 

Milling 4  00 

Freight 5  00 

$14-75 

Deducting  these  costs  from  an  average  sale  value  of  $25  leaves 
a  margin  of  $10.25  for  stumpage  and  profit.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  prices  paid  for  stumpage  are  now  (1920)  between  $5  and  $10 
per  M. 

Expressed  in  terms  of  man  and  horse  hours  per  M  the  following 
figures  give  an  idea  of  average  conditions: 

Man  hours         Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 2j 

Skidding  and  hauling  to  mill 8  16 

Milling 4 

Total 14?  16 

Land  Values.  —  The  problem  of  setting  a  proper  valuation  on 
southern  pine  land  is  difficult  because  it  has  in  most  cases  a  poten- 
tial value  for  agriculture.  The  climate  permits  of  the  raising  of 
a  variety  of  crops  and  the  lands  are  frequently  so  accessible  to 
water  or  rail  transportation  that  they  appear  susceptible  of 
intensive  cultivation.  Three  factors  tend  to  offset  these  advan- 
tages, however;  in  the  first  place,  the  sterility  of  pine  soil  has 
become  a  by-word  and  since  there  is  a  large  amount  of  erosion 
due  to  the  open  winter  and  heavy  midsummer  rains  fertilization 
is  a  constant  and  heavy  charge.  Furthermore,  there  is  the  cost 
of  clearing  the  land  of  stumps  and  the  distance  to  market. 
Twenty-five  to  fifty  dollars  an  acre  must  be  figured  on  to  put 
the  land  in  shape  for  thoro  cultivation.  Altho  sandy  land  is 
well  adapted  for  market  gardening  if  heavily  fertilized  the  dis- 
tance from  market  militates  against  a  rapid  spread  of  this  indus- 
try. Virginia  and  North  CaroHna  pine  lands  within  a  few  hours 
of  the  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia  markets  have  been  profitably 


6o  SOUTHEASTERN  PINE   TYPE 

turned  into  market  gardens  but  south  of  there  it  has  only  been 
possible  to  raise  certain  special  crops  like  early  potatoes  from 
Florida,  for  example.  Of  course,  market  gardens  near  the  larger 
southern  cities  have  prospered  but  every  section  does  not  con- 
tain a  New  Orleans  or  an  Atlanta. 

Probably  the  best  criterion  of  what  the  average  pine  land  is 
worth  for  agriculture  is  the  standard  set  at  the  recent  Cut-over 
Land  Conference  in  New  Orleans  —  April  1 1  to  13,  191 7.  There 
it  was  agreed  that  $5  an  acre  was  a  reasonable  figure  for  raw 
lands  which  had  to  be  cleared,  fenced  and  cultivated.  This 
valuation  is  not  so  high  that  growing  a  second  crop  of  trees  is  out 
of  the  question.  In  fact  it  was  resolved  that  many  acres  were 
"better  adapted  for  forest  growth  than  for  agricultural  crops." 
Briefly  then,  while  pine  land  has  a  potential  value  for  market 
gardening,  general  farming  and  grazing,  the  economic  conditions 
must  be  favorable  to  make  these  uses  more  profitable  than 
forestry.  For  any  of  these  purposes  an  average  value  of  more 
than  $5  per  acre  does  not  seem  justified. 

Titles.  —  The  same  situation  with  reference  to  titles  prevails 
as  in  the  rest  of  the  south.  In  the  surveyed  parts  they  are  reason- 
ably clear  and  simple  but  in  the  old  original  thirteen  states  where 
the  quarter  section  system  of  land  surveys  was  not  adopted  the 
confusion  is  almost  hopeless.  Grants  have  been  issued  with 
reckless  disregard  to  prior  claims  so  that  there  is  a  network  of 
conflicting  lines.  This  maze  has  been  still  further  snarled  up  by 
the  loss  of  records  during  the  Civil  War.  As  a  consequence  a 
complete  abstract  of  title  or  even  a  clear  chain  of  titles  is  out  of 
the  question  in  many  places  and  it  is  as  difficult  to  locate  grants 
on  the  ground.  Much  of  the  land  has  been  considered  of  low 
value  so  that  no  attempt  has  been  made  to  keep  up  the  fences  or 
corners. 


CHAPTER  VI 

SOUTHERN  BOTTOMLANDS 

General  Conditions.  —  The  Dismal  Swamp  of  Virginia  and  the 
Everglades  of  Florida  are  symbolic  of  the  dark  and  mysterious. 
They  have  furnished  a  somber  background  for  many  a  weird  tale. 
But  they  are  also  representative  of  an  important  type  of  timber- 
iand  which  furnishes  millions  of  board  feet  of  cypress  and  tupelo 
gum  annually.  These  characteristic  species  are  only  found  in  the 
wet  river  bottoms  and  river  swamps  of  the  southeastern  United 
States. 

With  such  a  location  the  climate  is  mild  to  subtropical.  The 
growing  season  is  never  less  than  seven  months  and  may  be 
II  months  in  duration.  The  precipitation  is  usually  over  50 
inches  annually,  as  a  glance  at  a  rainfall  map  of  the  United 
States  will  show.  The  south  Atlantic  coast,  the  Gulf  coast  and 
the  lower  Mississippi  valley  are  all  regions  of  heavy  rainfall. 
Absolute  evaporation  figures  are  lacking  but  the  long  growing 
season  would  naturally  tend  to  minimize  the  effect  of  the  heavy 
precipitation  were  it  not  for  the  great  humidity  of  the  swamps. 
This  in  turn  is  mainly  the  result  of  the  slow  runoff.  The  water 
from  the  higher  lands  accumulates  in  the  low  lying  river  bottoms, 
converting  them  into  swamps.  Hence,  it  comes  about  that  this 
type  has  as  much  moisture  available  for  tree  growth  as  any  in 
the  United  States.  In  fact  there  is  often  too  much.  Tree 
analyses  show  that  while  growth  is  very  rapid  on  the  relatively 
high  river  banks  the  same  tree  species  increase  very  slowly  in  the 
adjacent  but  wet  "  back  swamps." 

Besides  cypress  and  tupelo  gum  the  other  commercially  im- 
portant species  are  cottonwood,  red  gum,  white  ash,  Uve  oak, 
holly,  mahogany  and  lignumvitae.  Their  relative  abundance 
and  grouping  depend  upon  two  factors,  the  degree  of  wetness  of 
the  soil  and  the  amount  of  logging  or  clearing.  In  the  perma- 
nently wet  back   sWamps  the  cypress  and   tupelo   gum   have 

6i 


62 


SOUTHERN   BOTTOMLANDS 


proved  themselves  capable  of  distancing  all  competitors  in  their 
ability  to  stand  flooding.  In  fact  many  individuals  of  these 
species  stand  with  their  roots  permanently  in  stagnant  water. 


Fig.  6.     Distribution  of  the  Southern  Bottomlands 

Along  the  higher  river  banks  there  is  not  the  same  monotony  of 
composition.  The  better  growth  conditions  give  rise  to  keener 
competition.  Then,  too,  there  is  further  complication  of  clear- 
ing for  it  was  along  the  river  banks  that  the  ante-bellum  corn- 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS  63 

fields  were  hewn  out  of  the  swamp  with  cheap  slave  labor.  Altho 
these  clearings  were  subject  to  destructive  floods  about  once  in 
three  years  the  heavy  yields  from  the  fertile  alluvial  soil  in  the 
two  good  years  tended  to  offset  the  loss  of  the  flood  year.  In 
these  old  fields  cottonwood  and  ash  usually  preempted  the  best 
drained  sites  while  red  gum  took  the  second  choice.  The  latter 
is,  however,  far  more  abundant  numerically  because  its  toler- 
ance permits  it  to  grow  well  in  dense,  pure  stands.  Live  oak  is 
another  species  which  keeps  to  relatively  high  ground  if  there 
may  be  said  to  be  any  such  thing  in  a  river  bottom.  Holly, 
mahogany  and  lignumvitae  are  seldom  found  in  abundance  but 
occur  scattered  sparingly  on  the  better  drained  portions  under- 
neath the  other  trees.  The  following  subtypes  include  the 
principal  composition  combinations  which  occur  commonly: 

Pure  cypress. 

Cypress  and  tupelo  gum. 

Pure  red  gum. 

Mixed  white  ash  and  cottonwood. 

Hardwood  hammock  (in  southern  Florida). 

Bottomlands  are  not  favorable  places  for  forest  fires  so  that 
this  kind  of  damage  is  at  a  minimum.  Likewise  destructive  in- 
sects and  fungi  are  not  abundant,  whether  because  fires  have  not 
weakened  the  timber  or  because  the  frequent  floods  tend  to  keep 
them  in  check  has  not  been  yet  determined.  Beyond  a  heart 
rot  in  cypress  —  called  "  peck  "  —  all  the  bottomland  tree 
species  are  unusually  free  from  defects. 

The  rapidity  of  growth  on  the  better  drained  sites  is  truly 
remarkable.  Individually  the  intolerant  species  like  cotton- 
wood and  ash  attain  the  largest  diameter  and  greatest  height  but 
in  yield  per  acre  the  more  tolerant  red  gum  and  cypress  lead. 
The  results  of  growth  investigations  of  the  leading  species  are 
summarized  below: 


64 


SOUTHERN  BOTTOMLANDS 
ESTIMATED  GROWTH   IN   loo  YEARS 


Species 


Ash 

Cottonwood 
Cypress.  .  .  . 
Red  gum.  .  . 


Total  height 


Ins. 
I20 

no 
100 


Yield  per  acre 

(3  inches  and 

over  dbh.) 


Cubic  feet 
10,400 
12,000 


Timber  Valuation. —  The  cost  of  estimating  in  this  type  is 
seldom  high,  but  neither  can  it  be  made  low.  An  average  figure 
per  acre  is  eight  cents  with  a  range  from  5  to  15  cents.  The 
factors  which  work  against  low  costs  are: 

Inaccessibility. 

Irregularity  of  boundaries. 

Poor  living  conditions. 

Danger  from  snakes  and  disease. 

Swamp  and  bottomlands  are  not  frequented  by  many  people. 
Hence  they  have  few  roads.  Only  the  hunter,  the  hog  grazer, 
the  logger,  and  the  moonshiner  are  called  by  business,  legitimate 
or  otherwise,  to  penetrate  the  back  swamps  and  to  none  is  a  road 
a  necessity.  Even  the  logger  prefers  to  use  water  transportation. 
Unfortunately,  however,  the  estimator  cannot  do  his  work  well 
in  a  boat  and  must  therefore  be  in  the  swamp  when  it  is  driest 
and  hence  least  accessible  by  the  usual  standards.  Bottomlands 
are  governed  entirely  by  topography  so  that  they  will  not  be 
bounded  by  any  geometric  figures  of  ^man's  devising.  This 
makes  the  task  of  determining  the  area  of  a  tract  to  be  estimated 
one  of  great  difficulty.  Either  the  outside  boundary  must  be 
traversed  or  the  estimate  strips  run  close  enough  together  to 
catch  up  all  the  major  indentations  and  excresences.  The  third 
factor  is  really  an  outgrowth  of  the  first.  Where  people  do  not 
often  go  for  business  or  pleasure,  the  living  quarters  are  crude 
makeshifts  only.  Hence  it  is  usually  difficult  to  find  either  a 
comfortable  logging  camp  or  clean  farm  house  to  use  as  head- 
quarters. If  tents  are  used  they  must  be  raised  above  the  flood 
line,  protected  from  roving  hogs  and  cattle,  and  screened  to  keep 


TIMBER   VALUATION  65 

out  dangerous  insects  and  snakes.  This  type  is,  in  fact,  prac- 
tically the  only  one  in  which  the  danger  from  snakes  is  a  constant 
menace.  Rattlesnakes  occur  in  other  kinds  of  timber  but  they 
are  seldom  abundant  and  are  not  accompanied  by  the  water 
moccasin,  one  of  our  deadliest  and  most  active  reptiles.  Then 
too  crocodiles  occur  in  the  southern  parts  of  the  bottomland  type.. 
But  probably  the  most  serious  enemies  of  the  estimator  are  the 
fleas  which  disturb  his  sleep,  the  chiggers  which  burrow  under 
his  skin,  the  mosquito  that  inocculates  him  with  malaria  and  yel- 
low fever,  and  the  bacteria  that  produce  dysentery  and  typhoid 
fever.     All  are  abundant  in  the  swamps. 

There  are,  fortunately,  certain  offsetting  factors  which  tend  to 
keep  down  the  estimating  costs.  The  stands  are  fairly  uniform 
so  that  a  low  percentage  estimate  is  adequate.  Rarely  is  more 
than  15  per  cent  necessary.  Then,  too,  the  merchantable  limits 
are  fairly  constant  because  practically  all  the  lumber  cut  from 
the  type  goes  into  the  general  market  and  the  logger  does  not 
attempt  to  utilize  below  a  diameter  of  10  inches  breast  high  nor 
run  his  logs  above  a  top  diameter  of  eight  inches. 

Stumpage  figures  for  the  species  in  this  t>pe  are  not  abundant 
but  all  that  could  be  secured  are  given  below : 

I9CX3 

Ash $3.03  ($2.75  to  $3.10) 

Cottonwood I  •  45  (  i  ■  15  to    2 .  24) 

Cypress i .  58 

Gum,  red 1.68(1.4210    1.72) 

Gum,  tupelo 

Oak,  live 3.18(1.7010    5.83) 

They  show  that  live  oak  and  white  ash  are  the  most  valuable 
species  while  the  other  three  are  not  sufficiently  valuable  to  get 
above  an  average  value  of  $2  per  M.  It  must,  however,  be  under- 
stood that  the  figures  given  are  averages  from  the  whole  United 
States.  For  the  bottomland  type  they  are  somewhat  too  high 
for  the  species  like  ash  and  oak  which  occur  in  other  types  which 
are  more  accessible.  The  other  species  which  occur  only  in  this 
type  give  values  which  can  be  taken  as  representative  of  con- 
ditions in  1900. 


66  SOUTHERN   BOTTOMLANDS 

To  determine  the  stumpage  value  of  the  timber  on  any  partic- 
ular tract  it  is  necessary  to  subtract  the  costs  of  logging  and  man- 
ufacture plus  a  reasonable  profit  from  the  average  sale  value. 
This  latter  is,  of  course,  determined  by  the  uses  of  each  species 
and  grade.  It  will,  therefore,  be  necessary  to  consider  in  con- 
siderable detail  what  each  species  can  be  used  for  and  how 
much  each  use  will  bring. 

Ash  and  oak  have  already  been  discussed  under  the  northern 
hardwood  and  southern  hardwood  types  so  that  they  need  not 
be  taken  up  again.  Cypress  is  a  fairly  soft,  strong  wood  with 
great  durability  and  a  handsome  figure.  Hence,  it  has  a  wide 
variety  of  uses.  It  can  be  used  as  a  substitute  for  softwoods 
like  white  pine  and  yellow  pine  especially  where  a  durable  wood 
is  required.  As  a  consequence  it  is  in  demand  for  outside  con- 
struction work,  railroad  ties  and  telephone  poles.  For  these 
purposes  it  commanded  a  price  varying  from  $15  to  $30  per  M 
at  the  mill  or  shipping  point  in  1914.  The  higher  grades  of  clear 
lumber  brought  even  better  prices  because  they  can  be  used  for 
interior  finish.  Recently  cypress  wainscoting  either  stained  or 
'*  brush  treated  "  to  bring  out  the  figure  has  become  very  popu- 
lar so  that  the  best  grades  sold  for  $100  at  the  mill.  Equally  high 
prices  were  paid  for  the  clear  lumber  used  in  the  consrtuction 
of  tanks,  silos,  and  wooden  piping,  uses  in  which  the  workability 
and  durability  of  cypress  make  it  preeminent  and  without  com- 
petition except  from  the  best  grades  of  white  pine  and  redwood. 
Even  the  poorest  grades  of  cypress  are  ordinarily  salable  be- 
cause they  can  be  used  for  sidewalks  and  fencing.  Hence  the 
average  value  per  M  is  high  and  may  be  summarized  as  follows 
in  191 

10  per  cent  at  $100.00  per  M $10.00 

20  per  cent  at   60.00   "  12.00 

50  per  cent  at   40 .  00   "  20 .  00 

20  per  cent  at   25 .  00   "  S .  00 

$47 • 00 

Red  gum  is  another  wood  which  started  low  in  the  scale  of 
lumber  values  but  has  achieved  an  enviable  position.  At  first 
it  was  merely  used  for  boxes  and  crates  and  little  valued  for  these 


TIMBER   VALUATION  67 

purposes  on  account  of  its  liability  to  warp  and  stain  in  seasoning. 
However,  as  better  methods  of  kiln  drying  and  sticking  were 
developed,  it  has  been  more  and  more  used  for  furniture,  gun- 
stocks,  and  veneers,  uses  for  which  a  hard,  close  grained  wood 
which  will  take  a  good  polish  are  needed  but  where  durabihty  is 
not  a  factor  of  importance.  The  common  grades  sold  for  $18 
at  the  mill  in  19 14  and  the  high  quahty  at  not  to  exceed  $30  per 
M  board  feet.  The  wood  has  shght  value  for  cord  wood  so  that 
the  tops  are  usually  left  in  the  woods  and  the  slabs  and  mill 
refuse  are  either  burned  as  fuel  in  the  mill  boilers  or  thrown  on 
the  refuse  heap.  Hence,  the  average  value  per  M  feet  log  scale 
never  exceeded  $25  per  M. 

Tupelo  gum  is  less  valuable  than  red  gum  because  its  light 
color  does  not  permit  of  its  use  as  a  substitute  for  dark  hardwoods 
like  black  walnut.  In  fact  it  finds  its  highest  use  merely  as  a  sub- 
stitute for  yellow  poplar  or  basswood  neither  of  wliich  are  used 
for  high  grade  furniture  fronts.  However,  where  handsome 
figures  or  durability  are  not  required  but  softness  and  elasticity 
are  assets  tupelo  gum  is  being  employed  more  and  more.  The 
lower  grades  are  usually  discarded  so  that  its  average  value  per 
M  log  scale  was  never  more  than  $i8ini9i4  and  frequently  less. 
Like  red  gum  it  is  difficult  to  season. 

Cottonwood  has  about  the  same  uses  as  tupelo  gum:  boxes, 
furniture  backs,  buggy  and  sleigh  panels,  etc.  It  is  equally  hard 
to  season,  is  not  hard  enough  to  poHsh  readily,  and  does  not  have 
an  attractive  figure.  Hence  its  average  sale  value  at  the  mill 
was  seldom  more  than  $15  per  M,  nor  could  the  tops  be  put  to 
any  use  for  fuel  or  pulp. 

Logging  methods  differ  from  those  employed  in  any  other  type 
because  of  the  water  in  the  swamps.  The  cheapest  way  where 
there  is  enough  of  it  is  to  make  it  an  ally  and  drive  the  timber  out. 
This  necessitates  preliminary  seasoning  even  for  cypress  so  that 
it  is  a  common  practice  to  deaden  the  trees  in  advance  of  logging 
and  allow  them  to  dry  out  standing.  This  same  method  is 
applied  with  all  the  swamp  species  except  ash  which  floats 
readily  green.  Skidding  and  hauling  to  a  drivable  stream  may 
be  accompUshed  in  several  ways.     Where  the  bottomlands  are 


68  SOUTHERN  BOTTOMLANDS 

dry  enough  steam  railways  may  be  used  supplemented  by  horse 
skidders  or  steam  skidders.  A  cheap  and  effective  way  is  to 
mount  the  steam  skidder  on  a  flat  boat  equipped  with  a  steam 
shovel  so  that  it  may  dig  its  own  channel.  Then  the  skidded 
logs  are  dropped  into  the  cleared  waterway  behind  the  scow  and 
floated  out  to  the  main  stream.  The  primitive  method,  but  still 
often  employed,  is  to  deaden  the  timber  in  the  early  fall,  allow  it 
to  season  all  winter  and  then  float  it  out  during  the  spring  freshets 
in  "  roads,"  so  called,  which  are  lanes  cut  thru  the  timber  during 
dry  weather  so  that  the  logs  may  be  floated  out.  Of  course,  the 
main  disadvantage  of  this  method  is  the  fact  that  each  step  in 
the  operation  must  wait  for  suitable  weather  conditions.  Time 
is  money  in  logging  as  well  as  in  other  industries. 

Bottomland  lumber  operations  are  most  economically  con- 
ducted in  large  camps  because  the  swamps  are  inaccessible  from 
ordinary  habitations. 

The  average  costs  per  M  in  19 14  for  the  different  steps  may  be 
summarized  as  follows: 

PerM 

Deadening $0. 15 

Felling  and  logmaking o .  60 

Skidding 3 .  25 

Hauling  or  driving  to  mill i .  00 

Milling  and  kilndrying 4 .  00 

$9.00 

A  fair  day's  work  for  a  crew  of  two  men  felling  and  bucking 
cypress  is  7M.  Red  gum  is  harder  so  that  4M  per  day  is  normal. 
Cottonwood,  tupelo  gum,  and  ash  come  in  between  these  two. 
Hence  the  cost  in  man  hours  would  be  as  follows: 

Man  hours  per  M 

CjTiress 2  J 

Cottonwood 3 

Tupelo  gum 3 

White  ash 3 

Red  gum 4 

The  cost  to  the  mill  likewise  varies  with  the  species.  Those  that 
float  can  be  transported  for  eight  man  hours  per  M  while  those 
that  must  be  hauled  five  miles  will  cost  about  six  man  hours  and 


LAND   VALUES 


69 


16  horse  hours  if  wagons  are  used.  The  miUing  time  ranges  from 
four  to  ten  man  hours  per  M.  Red  gum  is  particularly  hard  to 
season. 

Summarizing  the  data  for  the  bottomland  species  gives  the 
following  results: 


Costs 

Average 
sale  value 

Margin 

for  profit  and 

stum  page 

Ash   

$9.00 
9.00 
9.00 
9.00 
9.00 
9.00 

$35.00 
15.00 
24.50 
20.00 
18.00 
25.00 

$24 . 00 

Cottonwood 

6.00 

Cypress     

15-50 
II  .00 

Gum,  red 

Gum,  tupelo        

9.00 

Oak 

16.00 

Land  Values. —  .The  soil  in  this  type  has  a  large  potential  agri- 
cultural value  if  it  can  be  drained  and  protected  from  floods. 
When  this  can  be  done  it  is  easily  worth  $100  an  acre  for  the  pro- 
duction of  corn,  cotton,  or  truck.  But,  unfortunately,  this 
involves  great  expense  in  nearly  every  case.  A  short  ditch  levee 
will  not  answer.  The  ditches  must  be  miles  in  length,  carefully 
leveled,  and  properly  interlaced.  There  is  usually  only  a  slight 
fall  and  the  distribution  of  this  fall  over  an  elaborate  network  of 
ditches  is  an  engineering  task  of  no  small  magnitude.  The 
levees,  too,  must  be  conceived  and  constructed  on  a  large  scale. 
Unless  the  river  is  kept  within  bounds  for  long  stretches  the 
floods  will  turn  the  flank  of  the  levees. 

Another  factor  which  influences  the  agricultural  value  of  these 
lands  is  the  season  at  which  they  are  liable  to  be  flooded.  If  the 
floods  come  during  the  early  spring  the  water  will  subside  before 
the  spring  planting  needs  to  be  undertaken.  The  damage  done 
can  often  be  repaired.  But  if  the  streams  rise  during  midsum- 
mer when  the  corn  or  cotton  is  full  grown  the  loss  is  irreparable. 
The  Mississippi  is  more  Uable  to  early  spring  floods  and  summer 
floods  are  rare  because  the  periods  of  high  water  are  commonly 
due  to  the  melting  of  the  snow  at  their  headwaters.  In  the 
Atlantic  coast  streams  the  conditions  are  different.  They  rise 
in  the  southern  Appalachians  where  there  is  no  great  accumula- 


70  SOUTHERN   BOTTOMLANDS 

tion  of  snow.  Hence  spring  floods  are  of  minor  importance. 
The  period  of  heavy  precipitation  comes  in  the  summer  so  that 
crops  planted  in  the  bottomlands  of  North  Carolina,  South 
Carolina,  or  Georgia  are  lost  about  once  in  every  three  years. 
Consequently  large  drainage  schemes  are  not  so  practicable  in 
the  Atlantic  Coast  states  as  in  the  Mississippi  valley  where  the 
Federal  government  has  already  spent  large  sums  on  levees  and 
drainage  canals.  This  difference  in  the  season  of  flooding  is 
reflected  in  the  prices  commonly  paid  for  bottomlands.  Lands 
on  the  eastern  coast  seldom  bring  more  than  $30  an  acre  when 
cleared,  whereas  the  Mississippi  lands  seldom  sell  for  less  than 
$50  an  acre.  To  determine  the  value  of  the  bare  land  the  cost 
of  clearing  must  be  deducted.  This  will  be  not  less  than  $25  an 
acre. 

For  timber  productive  purposes  bottomland  is  worth  $10  an 
acre  assuming  a  final  yield  of  looM  per  acre  worth  $10  per  M,  a 
rotation  of  100  years,  interest  at  3  per  cent,  cost  of  regenera- 
tion $10  per  acre,  and  50  cents  an  acre  annually  for  protection 
and  administration. 

In  timberland  sales  the  value  of  the  land  plays  an  insignificant 
role  in  this  type  as  with  most  other  kinds  of  timberland  but  it  is 
nevertheless  true  that  bottomlands  have  as  high  a  potential  agri- 
cultural value  as  any  type  of  timberland  —  if  they  can  be  drained. 

Titles. —  The  title  problems  differ  with  the  method  of  land  sub- 
division. In  all  the  thirteen  original  states  there  is  confusion  of 
ownership,  a  network  of  overlapping  grants,  and  a  multiplicity 
of  claims  of  titles.  Where  the  state  lies  wholly  or  in  part  within 
the  bounds  of  the  Louisiana  or  Gadsen  Purchase  the  square 
section  system  prevails  and  there  is  greater  clarity.  In  both 
cases,  however,  the  irregularity  of  the  swamp  outlines  is  an 
obstacle  to  easy  description.  Commonly  it  is  necessary  to 
include  small  parcels  of  upland  in  rounding  out  bottomland  hold- 
ings. 

Still  another  difficulty  in  tracing  past  ownership  is  due  to  the 
destruction  of  land  records  during  the  Civil  War.  The  bottom- 
lands lay  in  the  war  zone  and  many  of  the  old  landmarks  and 
records  were  razed  at  that  time. 


CHAPTER   VII 
SOUTHERN   HARDWOODS 

General  Conditions. —  Immediately  south  of  the  white  pine 
type  a  vast  body  of  hardwood  timber  extends  southward  along 
the  Appalachian  Mountains  to  Alabama.  Westward  the  plains 
at  the  root  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  are  the  limit  of  this  hard- 
wood timber.  On  the  north  it  does  not  reach  farther  than  south- 
ern Connecticut  and  southern  New  York  as  a  t>'pe  but  its  out- 
posts occupy  the  warmer  sites  within  the  pine  t}^e.  In  the 
United  States  it  is  unique  and  constitutes  our  greatest  source  of 
hardwood  lumber.  The  only  similar  bodies  of  timber  are  those 
which  occupy  the  ridges  of  the  lower  ranges  in  France  —  the 
Ardennes,  the  Vosges,  the  Cote  d'Or,  the  Cevennes,  and  the 
Pyrenees  —  and  the  Carpathian  Mountains  in  Austria,  but  none 
of  these  possesses  the  extent,  the  variety  of  species,  or  the  ra- 
pidity of  growth  that  our  hardwood  belt  does.  The  accompany- 
ing map  shows  its  distribution. 

The  region  is  characterized  by  mild  winters,  long  summers,  and 
medium  to  heavy  precipitation.  The  growing  season  ranges 
from  six  months  —  May  to  October  —  in  the  north  to  seven 
months  in  the  south  —  April  thru  October.  The  rainfall  is 
heaviest  on  the  southwestern  end  of  the  Appalachians  in  North 
CaroUna  where  it  totals  over  65  inches  per  annum.  The  lowest 
precipitation  in  the  type  is  found  on  its  western  edge  where  grass 
takes  the  place  of  trees.  For  example  in  Missouri  the  rainfall 
ranges  between  34  and  47  inches.  As  might  be  expected  from  the 
long  growing  season  the  evaporation  or  flyoff  is  much  greater  than 
in  the  t>pes  previously  considered.  The  total  amount  of  mois- 
ture available  for  plant  growth  is  still  further  reduced  by  the 
rapid  runoff  which  takes  place  on  the  hillsides.  In  fact  there  is 
probably  no  place  in  the  United  States,  with  the  possible  excep- 
tion of  the  southwest,  where  the  erosion  is  so  great.     Denuded 

71 


72 


SOUTHERN   H.\RDW00nS 


hillsides  are  quickly  gullied  by  the  heavy  summer  rains  and  even 
during  the  winter  erosion  keeps  up  at  a  rapid  rate  because  the 
ground  is  not  protected  by  snow  but  is  alternately  frozen  and 


Fig.  7.     Distribution  of  the  Southern  Hardwood  Type 

thawed  so  that  the  top  layer  of  soil  is  rapidly  broken  up  and 
sloughs  off  down  hill. 

On  account  of  the  rapidity  of  erosion  the  characteristic  topog- 
raphy of  the  type  is  an  alternation  of  sharp  ridges  and  narrow 
valleys.  There  are  no  natural  lakes  in  the  southern  Appala- 
chians or  middle  and  lower  Mississippi  valley. 


GENERAL  CONDITIONS  73 

This  type  has  a  greater  variety  of  species  than  any  other  forest 
type  in  the  United  States  because  it  is  the  meeting  ground  ol 
northern  and  southern  species.  The  cool  summers  on  the 
mountaintops  allow  such  species  as  white  pine,  hemlock,  and  red 
oak  to  extend  their  range  southward  while  typically  southern 
species  like  loblolly  and  shortleaf  pine,  yellow  poplar  and  cucum- 
ber tree  have  worked  their  way  from  the  foothills  up  on  the  higher 
elevations.  While  it  is  impossible  on  a  small  scale  map  to  sub- 
divide the  hardwood  region,  in  the  examination  of  any  particular 
tract  it  soon  appears  that  there  are  three  distinct  types  with 
different  climatic  and  soil  conditions  and  consequently  a  distinct 
tree  composition.  The  mountain  valleys  —  called  coves  in  the 
southeast  —  \vith  deep,  rich,  alluvial  soil,  well  watered,  possess 
the  greatest  variety  of  species.  In  fact  all  the  kinds  of  trees 
would  grow  here  by  preference,  but  yellow  poplar,  hemlock,  the 
oaks,  the  hickories,  and  occasionally  the  chestnut  possess  greater 
reproductive  capacity,  more  rapid  growth  or  greater  tolerance,  so 
that  they  are  usually  able  to  crowd  out  other  species.  Normally 
a  cove  stand  which  has  been  untouched  by  the  lumberman's 
axe  is  either  pure  hemlock,  pure  chestnut,  or  a  mixture  of  yellow 
poplar,  white  oak,  cucumber,  hickory  and  hemlock.  In  this 
type  is  found  the  best  timber.  It  has  been  the  main  source  of  the 
yellow  poplar  for  which  the  southeast  is  so  famous.  But  while  it 
produces  large,  long  boled  timber  the  stands  are  seldom  very 
heavy.  While  hemlock  coves  may  occasionally  cut  better  than 
30,000  board  feet  per  acre  the  average  for  the  type  is  nearer 
15,000  feet  because  the  hardwoods  do  not  stand  so  close  together 
as  a  tolerant  species  like  hemlock.  Unfortunately,  also,  the  total 
extent  of  the  coves  is  not  great.  They  seldom  occupy  more  than 
15  per  cent  of  a  tract  and  5  per  cent  would  more  nearly  repre- 
sent the  mountain  conditions.  Hence,  reports  of  tracts  in  the 
southern  Appalachians  which  average  10,000  board  feet  to  the 
acre  over  large  areas  are  always  open  to  serious  question.  It  is 
the  two  other  types,  slope  and  ridge,  which  make  up  the  bulk  of 
such  tracts  and  their  average  stands  are  much  less  than  that  of 
the  cove  type. 

The  slope  type  is  an  intermediate  one  between  the  cool,  moist 


74  SOUTHERN   HARDWOODS 

climatic  conditions  of  the  cove  type  ^vith  its  deep  alluvial  soil  and 
the  ridge  type  which  as  its  name  implies  occupies  the  overdrained 
ridges  where  the  soil  is  shallow  and  sterile  and  evaporation  and 
transpiration  are  at  their  maxima  on  account  of  exposure  to  wind 
and  sun.  Since,  then,  the  soil  of  the  slope  type  is  not  quite  so 
well  suppHed  with  moisture  as  the  cove  type  nor  the  soil  so  deep, 
only  the  hardier  tree  species  will  be  found  cHmbing  up  thru  it 
from  the  more  sheltered  coves.  On  the  margin  where  the  two 
join  it  is  difhcult  to  draw  the  dividing  Hne  by  composition  alone, 
but  at  the  upper  edge  where  the  slope  type  merges  into  the  ridge 
type  no  yellow  poplars,  cucumber  trees  or  hemlock  are  found. 
Typically  its  composition  by  number  in  virgin  stands  is  as  follows: 

Per  cent 

Oaks 30 

Chestnut 20 

Yellow  poplar 10 

Black  cherry 5 

Hickory 5 

Hemlock 5 

Other  species 15 

100 

The  average  stand  per  acre  under  virgin  conditions  is  5000 
board  feet.  Naturally  it  is  the  most  extensive  type  in  the  south- 
ern Appalachians.  It  usually  makes  up  at  least  60  per  cent  of  the 
total  area  of  a  mountain  tract. 

In  the  ridge  type  the  number  of  species  is  still  further  reduced. 
Chestnut  and  hickory  occur  sparingly  but  the  important  species 
are  chestnut  oak  and  shortleaf  pine.  The  latter  preempts  the 
southern  and  western  exposures  while  the  chestnut  oak  is  more 
abundant  on  the  cooler  north  and  east  slopes.  Seldom  do  virgin 
stands  average  more  than  2000  board  feet  per  acre.  Fortunately 
for  the  productive  capacity  of  the  region  this  type  is  compar- 
atively limited  in  area.  It  usually  occupies  not  more  than  one- 
third  of  a  tract. 

Fire  is  here  as  everywhere  the  great  enemy  of  the  forest.  The 
drier  slope  and  ridge  types  suffer  most.  The  latter  has  usually 
been  burnt  over  at  least  every  other  year  and  frequently  annu- 
ally.    As  a  consequence  most  of  the  trees  are  fire  scarred  at  the 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


75 


butt  and  more  or  less  damaged  by  insects  and  fungi  as  a  result. 
Amongst  the  hardwoods,  however,  loss  from  insects  and  fungi  is 
not  serious,  probably  because  there  are  few  pure  stands.  With 
pine,  on  the  other  hand,  which  occurs  in  pure  groups,  insect 
damage  is  frequently  very  serious,  usually  after  the  tree  has  been 
weakened  by  fire.  For  example,  in  1 890-1 892  the  southern  pine 
beetle,  Dendroctonus  frontahs,  killed  practically  all  the  mature 
shortleaf  pine  and  pitch  pine  in  an  area  extending  from  North 
Carolina  to  southern  Pennsylvania  and  aggregating  over  75,000 
square  miles. ^  Fortunately  chestnut  blight  is  the  only  serious 
fungus  enemy  as  yet  reported  from  any  of  the  three  types  altho 
there  are  many  species  which  will  attack  trees  which  have  been 
weakened  by  fire. 

The  growth  of  individual  trees  in  diameter  and  height  is  usually 
very  rapid  as  the  following  figures  show: 


25  years 

so  years 

75  years 

i9"-93° 
i7"-88° 
i6"-8o° 

i6"-82° 
I 5 "-85° 
14   - 
1 2 "-60° 
io"-67° 

100  years 

8"-S7° 
8"-5o° 
5"-25° 
7   - 
5 "-35° 
4   -40 

s"- 

2  '-17 

2"-25° 

I 5 "-83° 

13 ''-77° 

12"- 

I I "-64° 

i3"-70° 

11"- 
6"-45° 
7"-SO° 

Chestnut  sprouts 

Chestnut  seedlings.  .  .  . 
Locust 

2o''-93° 
20"-90° 

16"- 

Hemlock 

Red  oak 

2o"-98° 

i6;;-95°, 

l8"-65° 
i3"-8o° 

Black  oak 

Shagbark  hickory 

But  in  spite  of  the  rapid  growth  of  single  trees  the  yield  per  acre 
per  annum  is  not  high  because  the  trees  do  not  stand  close  to- 
gether. Generally  speaking  the  density  per  acre  is  one-half  to 
one- third  of  that  in  the  types  previously  considered.  This  is  due 
to  the  lack  of  available  moisture.  Both  the  runoff  and  the  flyoflf 
are  rapid  and  hence  there  is  not  as  much  available  for  tree  growth 
as  in  the  cooler  northeast.  The  low  average  yields  per  acre  in 
virgin  stands  have  already  been  referred  to  and  the  yield  figures 
available  tell  the  same  story,  large  trees  individually  but  few  per 
acre. 


See  reports  by  Dr.  A.  D.  Hopkins,  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Entomology. 


76  SOUTHERN  HARDWOODS 

YIELD   PER  ACRE  —  SOUTHERN   HARDWOODS 
U.  S.  Forest  Service  Data 


Quality  i  site,  pure,  even  aged  stands 

25  years 

so  years 

75  years 

100  years 

cubic  feet 
2510 
3425 
2000 

75 

cubic  feet 
4650 
S4SO 
4000 
500 
1500 

cubic  feet 

925 
2400 

cubic  feet 

Yellow  poplar,  Virginia 

Yellow  poplar,  Tennessee 

1300 

These  figures  are  unsatisfactory  at  best  because  they  do  not 
differentiate  between  the  types,  cove,  slope  and  ridge.  Unfor- 
tunately, there  are  no  really  satisfactory  jdeld  data  in  existence. 
However,  as  a  guess,  using  the  meagre  information  available,  the 
average  annual  growth  conditions  in  even  aged  stands  is  esti- 
mated to  be: 

Cubic  feet 

Cove 50 

Slope 30 

Ridge 10 

Or  in  other  words  it  is  unreasonable  to  expect  in  a  rotation  of 
100  years  more  than  the  following  amounts  unless  the  stands  are 
thinned  intensively: 

Cubic  feet  Board  feet 

Cove 5000  30,000 

Slope 3000  18,000 

Ridge 1000  6,000 

And  even  these  figures  could  not  be  realized  unless  there  was 
complete  stocking  and  thoro  fire  protection. 

Timber  Valuation. —  It  is  difficult  to  generalize  in  regard  to  the 
methods  of  estimating.  There  are  so  many  variable  factors.  In 
the  first  place  the  size  of  the  tracts  differs  greatly  in  the  different 
regions.  In  the  southern  Appalachians  they  tend  to  be  large 
because  there  are  few  farms  to  cut  them  up,  but  even  there  there 
is  no  uniformity.  The  grant  system  of  selling  land  has  led  to  the 
setting  aside  of  small  holdings  of  less  than  100  years  in  between 


TIMBER    VALUATION  77 

the  boundaries  of  the  larger  tracts.  In  the  Ohio  and  upper  Mis- 
sissippi valleys  the  holdings  are  commonly  small  since  they  are 
merely  portions  of  farms  which  could  not  be  tilled  to  advantage. 
Obviously  a  larger  per  cent  of  a  small  tract  must  be  estimated 
than  of  a  large  tract. 

Another  complicating  factor  is  the  variation  between  types. 
This  has  already  been  referred  to.  Fortunately,  however,  the 
type  which  contains  the  most  timber,  the  cove  type,  is  the  most 
accessible  while  the  scantily  timbered  ridge  1)^)6  is  the  least  so- 
In  estimating,  therefore,  it  is  not  necessary  to  take  a  uniform 
percentage  of  the  three  types  but  the  amounts  covered  should 
stand  in  the  ratio  of  5  :  3  :  i .  In  other  words,  if  a  5  per  cent 
estimate  is  to  be  made  of  the  ridge  type,  15  per  cent  of  the  slope 
type  should  be  covered,  and  25  per  cent  of  the  cove  type. 

The  third  obstacle  to  be  overcome  is  the  variation  in  merchant- 
able limits.  Each  species  must  be  investigated  locally  before  it 
is  impossible  to  say  to  what  size  it  should  be  estimated  because 
the  diameter  hmits  are  determined  by  the  local  markets.  In 
general,  however,  it  may  be  said  that  lumber  should  not  be  esti- 
mated below  10  inches  dbh.  and  six  inches  in  the  top,  cordwood 
eight  inches  dbh.  and  four  inches  in  the  top,  poles  to  a  top  diam- 
eter of  five  inches  and  posts  to  three  inches  at  the  top  end. 

The  actual  costs  per  acre  of  estimating  southern  hardwoods 
run  from  45  cents  to  3  cents  with  an  average  of  10  cents  per 
acre  where  the  work  is  done  in  the  usual  way,  i.e.,  strips  66  feet 
wide  run  out  from  the  base  line  in  cardinal  directions  so  as  to 
cross  the  topographic  features  as  nearly  as  possible  at  right  angles. 

The  Twelfth  (1900)  Census  gives  the  following  figures  for  aver- 
age stumpage  values  for  the  species  in  this  type: 

PerM 

WTiite  pine : $3 .  66 

Hemlock 2.56 

Shortleaf  pine i .  12 

Black  walnut 5 .  00 

Chestnut 2.71 

Oak,  white 3.18 

Yellow  poplar 2 .  81 


78  SOUTHERN  HARDWOODS 

These  have,  of  course,  no  interest  at  the  present  time  except 
a  historical  one  anci  to  show  relative  values. 

What  the  stumpage  prices  may  be  on  any  tract  depends  upon 
the  cost  of  logging  and  manufacture  and  the  average  sale  value 
for  the  lumber  f.o.b.  the  mill.  For  softwoods,  including  yellow 
poplar,  the  following  figures  were  conservative  in  1914: 

Per  M 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  00 

Skidding 2 .  00 

Hauling  to  the  mill 4 .  oo 

Sawing,  planing  and  loading 7 .  00 

Total $14 .  00 

Hardwoods  cost  at  least  $5  more  per  M  because  the  felling,  haul- 
ing and  sawing  are  more  expensive  on  account  of  the  greater 
weight,  hardness  and  crookedness. 

In  order  to  determine  costs  with  varying  labor  prices  average 
costs  in  man  and  horse  hours  per  M  are  given  below,  separately 
for  hardwoods  and  softwoods: 


Softwoods 

Hardwoods 

Man 
Hours 

Horse 
Hours 

Man 
Hours 

Horse 
Hours 

Felling  and  bucking 

3 
6 
4 

16 

6 
10 
6 

Skidding  and  hauling  to 
Milling 

mill  (5  miles) 

25 

Totals 

13 

16 

22 

25 

Since  labor  makes  up  80  to  90  per  cent  of  the  total  cost  of  these 
items  it  is  possible  to  get  a  very  close  approximation  of  the  whole 
charge  from  these  figures. 

The  uses  to  which  white  pine  and  hemlock  are  put  have  already 
been  discussed.  Shortleaf  pine,  like  most  softwoods,  has  a 
variety  of  uses.  The  better  grades  command  a  good  price  as 
flooring  and  interior  finish,  wliile  the  poorer  grades  make  excel- 
lent common  lumber,  railroad  ties  and  wood  pulp.  The  prices 
which  material  fit  for  these  various  uses  brought  in  19 14  were  as 
follows  f.o.b.  the  mill: 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


79 


Flooring  and  finish  (30  to  35  per  cent  of  the  total  cut) $25 .  00  per  M 

Common  lumber 10. 00  per  M 

Railroad  ties 10.00  per  M 

Wood  pulp 5 .00  per  cord 

Black  walnut,  hickory,  chestnut,  and  oak  have  already  been 
discussed  under  the  white  pine  type  so  it  is  not  necessary  to  detail 
here  the  uses  to  which  they  are  put  and  the  values  received  for 
the  various  grades. 

Yellow  poplar  is  one  of  our  most  valuable  and  widely  used 
woods.  On  account  of  its  large  size,  clearness,  and  softness  it  is 
in  great  demand  for  interior  finishing.  For  this  purpose  it  com- 
manded a  value  at  the  mill  of  $40  per  M  in  19 14.  The  lower 
grades  go  into  boxes,  crates,  vehicles,  etc.,  in  fact  everywhere 
where  durabihty  in  contact  with  the  ground  is  not  a  prerequisite. 
The  average  mill  run  value  was  $25  per  M  in  1914.  The  tops 
and  limbs  may  be  worked  up  into  pulpwood  and  brought  $5  to 
$9  per  long  cord  at  the  pulp  mills  in  1914. 

Black  cherry  has  its  main  use  in  furniture  where  it  may  be  used 
as  a  substitute  for  mahogany  or  in  its  own  name.  The  ^^^de 
clear  boards  demanded  for  this  purpose  were  worth  $45  per  M 
f.o.b.  the  mill  in  1914.  Smaller  pieces  are  worked  up  into  handles 
for  small  tools. 

Locust  has  a  hard,  durable  yellow  wood  which  takes  a  high 
pohsh.  Its  most  important  uses  are  for  insulator  pins,  railway 
ties  and  fence  posts.  The  average  value  of  lumber  at  the  mill 
did  not  exceed  $25  per  M  in  19 14. 

SUMMARY  — COSTS  AND   VALUES 
1914 


Species 

Logging  and  manu- 
facturing costs 

Average 
sale  value 

Margin  for  stumpage 
price  and  profit 

White  pine 

S14.OO 
14.00 
14.00 
20.00 
20.00 
15.00 
20.00 
14.00 

S25 .00 
20.00 
18.00 
40.00 
25  .00 
20.00 
25  .00 
30.00 
35  00 
25  .00 

$11.00 
6.00 

4.00 
20.00 

Black  walnut 

5.00 

Oak 

16.00 

Black  cherrv 

Locust 

20.00 

5.00 

8o  SOUTHERN   HARDWOODS 

Land  Values. —  Land  values  are  easier  to  determine  for  these 
types  than  in  the  previous  ones  because  all  except  the  ridge  types 
have  some  agricultural  value.  The  coves,  in  fact,  are  usually 
deep  soiled  and  fertile  enough  for  farm  land  and  should  be  so 
used  if  they  are  sufficiently  large  and  accessible.  In  other  words 
farming  is  their  highest  use  if  workable  farm  units  can  be  made 
from  them.  This  is  the  case  except  in  the  mountains,  and  prac- 
tically aU  the  cove  type  throughout  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio  val- 
leys is  so  used.  Its  value  is  mainly  determined  by  its  accessibil- 
ity. In  a  region  of  railroads  and  good  roads  $200  an  acre  is  not 
excessive  while  uncleared  stump  land  of  the  same  quality  and 
ha\dng  the  same  climate  but  inaccessible  may  not  sell  for  more 
than  $10  per  acre.  For  timber  productive  purposes  it  is  worth 
between  $5  and  $10  per  acre. 

The  slope  type  naturally  has  a  lower  value  because  it  will  yield 
less.  Hence,  more  than  $5  per  acre  cannot  profitably  be  paid  for 
it  for  forest  purposes  under  present  market  conditions.  It  is 
generally  too  steep  for  farming  but  can  be  used  for  pasture  in 
limestone  regions.  Other  types  of  soil  wash  so  badly  that  a  grass 
cover  cannot  be  maintained. 

The  ridge  t>^e  is  likewise  usable  for  grazing  but  only  lime- 
stone soils  will  make  permanent  pastures.  For  timber  produc- 
tion the  value  is  less  than  $1  per  acre  because  of  the  excessive 
washing  and  drainage. 

Taking  the  three  t}^es  together  the  land  has  practically  no 
present  value.  Sales  of  large  tracts  of  mountain  land  including 
the  three  types  have  never  taken  into  account  the  land  values  but 
have  been  based  entirely  on  the  amount  and  quahty  of  the  timber 
until  the  Forest  Ser\ace  began  buying  land  in  the  southern 
Appalachians.     The  Government  has  used  the  following  figures: 

Per  acre 

Cove  type $5 .  00 

Slope  type 3 .  00 

Ridge  type i .  00 


CHAPTER  VIII 
PINON  AND   JUNIPER 

General  Conditions.  Location  and  Extent. —  This  is  the  type 
of  woodland  which  occurs  on  the  foothills  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains in  western  Texas,  New  Mexico,  Arizona,  Colorado,  Utah, 
Nevada,  California,  Idaho  and  Oregon.  Above  it  lies  the  western 
yellow  pine  and  below  it  stretches  the  plains  country  with  its 
sparse  vegetation  of  sage  brush  and  buffalo  grass. 

The  climate  of  the  type  may  be  characterized  as  a  hot,  dry  one, 
but  as  might  be  expected  in  a  type  with  such  a  \vide  range  there 
is  a  considerable  local  variation.  The  mean  annual  temperature, 
for  example,  ranges  from  65  degrees  to  45  degrees.  With  the 
annual  precipitation  there  is  less  variation.  It  is  quite  uniformly 
10  to  15  inches.  But  again,  the  length  of  growing  season  differs 
greatly  from  north  to  south.  In  New  Mexico  five  to  six  months 
are  free  from  frost  whereas  barely  four  months  have  mean  annual 
temperatures  above  32  degrees  in  the  northern  part  of  the  types 
range. 

The  topography  and  soil  are  varied  and  do  not  seem  to  have 
any  controlling  influence  on  the  distribution  of  the  t^pe.  Gen- 
erally, however,  it  occupies  a  well  drained  slope  with  a  deep 
loamy  soil  but  the  type  is  found  on  shallow  soiled  hillsides  pro- 
\'ided  the  climatic  conditions  are  right. 

The  two  species  which  give  their  names  to  the  type  are  the  only 
arborescent  forms  which  occur  in  any  abundance.  The  pinon, 
Pinus  edulis,  is  not  more  abundant  numerically  but  the  larger 
size  which  it  attains  and  the  edible  character  of  its  seeds  makes 
it  the  more  important  commercially.  The  junipers,  Juniperus. 
are  often  more  numerous  indi\ddually  but  their  small  size  makes 
them  less  valuable  for  firewood  and  hence  they  are  the  subor- 
dinate species.  A  striking  feature  of  the  type  is  the  openness  of 
the  stands.     The  trees  are  scattered  ^vith  open  places  in  between 

81 


82  PINOX   AND    JUXIPER 

which  are  covered  with  grass  if  fertile  and  moist  enough  but 
bare  if  dry  and  sandy.  Since  the  trees  are  seldom  large  enough 
to  make  saw  timber  an  idea  of  the  total  volume  can  not  well  be 
expressed  in  board  feet.  The  cubic  foot  is  the  usual  unit  of 
measurement.  The  stand  per  acre  seldom  exceeds  two  cords 
and  an  average  for  the  type  thruout  its  range  would  be  nearer 
one  cord. 

The  growth  is  relatively  slow  on  account  of  the  dryness  of  the 
climate.  For  yield  prediction  there  is  Httle  foundation.  The 
type  has  had  so  httle  commercial  value  that  its  growth  has  not 
been  investigated.  It  is  only  possible  to  say  that  the  average 
growth  per  acre  per  annum  does  not  exceed  one-quarter  cord. 

Even  this  small  annual  accretion  may  be  retarded  by  such 
parasites  as  mistletoe  and  the  cedar  apple.  No  especially 
destructive  insects  have  been  reported  as  yet  from  this  type. 

Timber  Values. —  The  only  wood  products  that  the  type  fur- 
nishes are  fence  posts  and  fuel.  These  may  be  cut  as  small  as 
an  inch  at  the  top  end  and  three  feet  long.  The  cost  of  cutting 
is  relatively  high  on  account  of  the  scantiness  of  the  stand  but 
labor  is  cheap  so  that  $2  a  cord  is  usually  ample.  Delivering 
is  done  in  great  part  by  burros,  the  wood  being  bound  on  pack 
saddles.  This  costs  about  50  cents  per  mile  per  cord  on  account 
of  the  expense  in  handling  the  many  small  pieces  into  which  fuel- 
wood  has  to  be  cut  to  allow  it  to  be  packed  readily  on  the  burros. 
As  a  consequence  the  total  delivered  value  is  in  the  neighborhood 
of  $5  per  cord.  This  leaves  a  stumpage  value  of  about  -Si  per 
cord  for  the  owner  of  the  standing  trees. 

Land  Values. —  From  the  figures  given  above  it  follows  that  the 
pinon-juniper  type  has  a  negative  value  for  the  production  of 
wood  alone.  It  is  only  where  the  tree  growth  has  additional  use- 
fulness as  a  protective  covering  to  prevent  erosion  and  hinder 
rapid  runoff  that  the  trees  can  profitably  be  retained.  This  use 
is  difficult  to  measure  but  it  is  a  real  one  as  the  many  instances 
where  water  is  conserved  in  this  way  for  domestic  and  irrigation 
purposes  show.  The  absolute  value  depends  upon  the  demand 
but  $1  per  acre  may  safely  be  set  as  a  minimum.  An  equitable 
way  to  determine  the  value  in  a  specific  case  would  be  to  deduct 


TITLES  83 

from  the  sale  value  all  costs  of  construction,  as,  for  example,  the 
masonry  work  in  a  retaining  dam,  and  assign  the  remainder  as  the 
conservation  value  of  the  growth  on  the  watershed.  To  make 
this  more  concrete  assume  the  case  of  a  town  that  gets  its  water 
supply  from  a  valley  in  the  pinon-juniper  type.  The  capital- 
ized value  of  the  annual  water  rentals  in  the  town  amount  to 
$5000.  The  cost  of  constructing  a  dam  including  ail  necessary 
roads,  interest  charges,  etc.,  and  the  capitalized  value  of  the 
annual  costs  of  operation  and  maintenance  total  $4500.  This 
leaves  a  balance  of  $500  for  the  conservation  value  of  the  water- 
shed, or  $2  per  acre  if  there  are  250  acres. 

Titles. —  Titles  present  no  special  difficulties  because  this  type 
usually  occurs  on  land  that  has  been  surveyed.  This  means  that 
the  boundaries  are  easy  to  locate  and  that  transfers  have  been 
accurately  described  by  quarter  sections.  Smaller  areas  have 
not  usually  been  sold  because  the  land  has  so  small  a  value  per 
acre.  Its  main  use  is  for  grazing  and  at  least  40  acres  are  needed 
to  keep  a  cow  or  horse  during  the  year.  Consequently  the 
transfers  have  commonly  been  in  large  blocks  for  the  use  of  some 
large  cattle  or  sheep  outfit. 


CHAPTER  rX 
CHAPPARAL 

General  Conditions. —  The  plant  formation  in  which  occur 
sclerophyllons,  dwarf,  evergreen  shrubs  and  trees  is  confined  to 
southern  California  and  southern  Arizona.  Various  species  of 
shrubs  are  found  but  the  type  takes  its  name  of  "  chapparal  " 
from  the  dwarf  oaks  which  occur  in  it.  Approximately  10,000,000 
acres  are  included. 

The  rainfall  according  to  the  Weather  Bureau  records  varies 
from  9.54  inches  at  San  Diego  to  21.42  inches  at  San  Luis  Obispo. 
The  average  is,  however,  less  than  15  inches.  60°  F.  is  the  mean 
annual  temperature  with  a  range  from  22  degrees  to  109  degrees 
and  hence  the  evaporation  is  high.  As  a  consequence  there  is 
a  very  small  amount  of  moisture  available  for  plant  growth 
more  especially  since  the  rainfall  is  concentrated  during  the 
winter  months  and  runs  off  rapidly. 

The  length  of  the  growing  season  is  not  determined  so  much 
by  the  number  of  months  during  which  the  thermometer  is  above 
freezing  but  by  the  period  during  which  there  is  enough  moisture. 

Chapparal  is  confined  to  the  slopes  of  the  mountain  ranges 
which  are  high  enough  to  be  above  the  arid  plains  country. 
This  is  arid  because  the  mountains  intercept  the  rain  bearing 
clouds  from  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Even  the  drought  resisting  vege- 
tation of  the  chapparal  cannot  creep  down  into  these  areas  of 
scant  rainfall.  The  type  is  therefore  confined  to  the  lower 
slopes  of  the  mountains  of  California  and  Arizona  between 
elevations  of  o  to  8000  feet  above  sea  level.  The  lower  limit  is 
only  reached  near  the  Pacific  Ocean  where  the  rainfall  is  relatively 
abundant.  Inland  the  chapparal  has  to  ascend  the  mountains 
to  obtain  enough  soil  moisture.  As  a  consequence  the  topogra- 
phy of  the  type  is  characteristically  steep  and  much  cut  up  while 

the  soil  is  thin. 

84 


TIMBER   AND   LAND   VALUES  85 

Plummer's  studies  show  that  in  southern  California  the  distri- 
bution of  genera  by  number  is  as  follows: 

Per  cent 

Adenostama 39 

Quercus 14 

Ceanothus 14 

Arctostaphylos 10 

Cercocarpus S 

Artemisia 4 

Other  genera 14 

100 

Of  these  only  the  species  of  oak  (Quercus)  attain  tree  form  but 
even  they  are  much  dwarfed  and  can  only  be  used  for  fuel  and 
fencing. 

As  might  be  supposed  from  the  dry  climate  growth  is  very  slow. 
An  annual  increment  of  one-fifth  of  a  cord  of  firewood  per  acre 
per  annum  is  the  best  that  may  be  expected. 

Fire  is  the  worst  enemy  of  the  type  and  may  burn  the  roots  so 
deeply  that  a  ground  cover  will  not  reestablish  itself  for  years. 

Timber  Land  and  Values. —  Since  the  type  furnishes  nothing 
but  low  grade  fuel  and  fencing  the  question  of  stumpage  values 
can  be  treated  briefly.  Were  better  material  available  the  dwarf 
trees  would  not  even  be  considered  for  these  purposes  but  the 
scarcity  of  trees  in  the  arid  region  gives  chapparal  firewood  and 
fencing  an  average  value  of  $8  per  cord,  delivered.  The  cutting, 
stacking,  seasoning  and  delivering  cost  a  great  deal  on  account  of 
the  scattered  condition  of  the  trees  and  the  high  price  of  labor. 
Hence  there  is  seldom  a  margin  of  more  than  $3  per  cord  for 
stumpage  and  profit.  With  the  average  stand  of  two  cords  per 
acre,  the  stumpage  value  of  the  timber  never  exceeds  $5  per  acre. 

For  the  conservation  of  water,  however,  the  chapparal  possesses 
a  high  value  whenever  settlement  creates  a  demand  for  domestic 
or  irrigation  supplies.  This  is  the  prime  use  of  the  Cleveland, 
Angeles,  and  Santa  Barbara  National  Forests  and  without  such 
protection  the  cities  of  San  Diego,  San  Bernardino,  Los  Angeles 
and  Santa  Barbara  would  suffer  greatly  for  lack  of  water.  This 
value  is  difficult  to  appraise  accurately  but  $10  an  acre  does  not 
seem  an  excessive  figure  where  the  water  supply  of  a  large  city  is 
in  puestion. 


86  CHAPPARAL 

Agriculturally  the  type  is  valueless  except  for  a  Limited  amount 
of  grazing  on  account  of  the  arid  climate  and  steep  slopes.  Goats 
and  sheep  can  obtain  a  certain  amount  of  winter  grazing  but  this 
use  seldom  creates  a  land  value  of  more  than  $io  an  acre  adjacent 
to  settlements.  The  greater  part  of  this  type  which  is  grazed  has 
been  considered  too  poor  for  private  appropriation  and  remains 
in  the  hands  of  the  Federal  Government. 

Occasionally  these  lands  are  valuable  for  mineral  deposits. 

Land  Titles.—  Titles  are  seldom  difficult  to  trace  because  the 
nearness  to  settlement  and  demand  for  mining  have  forced  the 
survey  of  the  lands  within  the  type.  Holdings  are  for  the  most 
part  small. 


CHAPTER  X 

WESTERN   YELLOW   PINE   TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  The  timber  type  in  which  western  yel- 
low pine  is  the  dominant  species  is  found  all  the  way  from  the 
Canadian  line  to  the  Mexican  border.  Patches  of  greater  or  less 
extent  occur  in  all  the  states  west  of  the  Great  Plains.  Large 
solid  bodies  do  not,  however,  occur  in  Nevada. 

With  such  a  range  the  climate  of  the  type  must  necessarily 
vary  within  wide  limits.  For  example,  the  annual  average 
temperature  varies  from  45  degrees  to  60  degrees  while  the  num- 
ber of  months  during  which  there  is  no  growth  on  account  of  cold 
range  from  three  in  southern  New  Mexico  and  Arizona  to  seven 
in  northern  Montana.  In  fact  the  only  climate  factor  which  is 
fairly  uniform  is  the  annual  precipitation.  This  never  exceeds 
25  inches  and  has  a  normal  range  between  15  and  20  inches.  Its 
distribution  is  not,  however,  nearly  so  regular.  In  the  southwest 
44  per  cent  of  the  annual  precipitation  comes  in  the  summer 
months  of  June,  July  and  August  while  in  the  northwest  only 
25  per  cent  falls  during  the  same  period.  Such  a  wide  range  of 
climatic  conditions  has  naturally  resulted  in  considerable  varia- 
tion in  the  form  of  the  species.  In  the  warmer  and  drier  parts  of 
its  range  where  the  scant  rainfall  is  barely  sufficient  the  cones  are 
small  and  the  seeds  encased  in  thick  scales.  Where  there  is  more 
abundant  moisture  the  cones  are  larger  and  do  not  retain  the 
seeds  so  tenaciously. 

The  yellow  pine  type  is  confined  to  the  foothill  region  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  and  hence  occurs  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the 
higher  mountains.  These  are  usually  alluvial  in  origin  or  at 
least  covered  with  loam,  sand  or  gravel  to  a  good  depth.  The 
exact  effect  of  the  soil  upon  western  yellow  pine  has  not  been 
definitely  determined  because  it  grows  thriftily  on  a  variety  of 
soils  provided  they  are  weU  drained.     Swampy  or  alkaline  soils 

87 


WESTERN   YELLOW   PINE  TYPE 


Fig.  8.     Distribution  of  the  Western  Yellow  Pine  Type 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS  89 

are  apparently  unlit.  But  the  soil  seems  to  be  secondary  in 
importance  to  the  climate.  In  other  words  yellow  pine  is  now 
occup>'ing  the  foothill  region  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  not 
because  the  soil  conditions  are  particularly  favorable  but  because 
it  has  been  more  successful  than  any  other  western  species  in 
adapting  itself  to  the  chmatic  conditions  which  characterize  the 
foothill  region. 

Western  yellow  pine  is  so  predominant  within  the  type  that 
the  other  species  which  sometimes  occur  with  it  may  be  briefly 
disposed  of.  On  the  lower  edge  of  the  type  where  the  foothills 
run  out  into  the  plains  pinon  and  juniper  advance  a  short  dis- 
tance into  the  type.  On  the  upper  edge  or  on  north  or  east  slopes 
within  the  type  Douglas  fir,  lodgepole  pine,  western  larch,  and 
Alpine  fir  sometimes  occur  but  all  these  species  are  typical  of 
climates  cooler  and  moister  than  that  of  the  yellow  pine  type. 
Hence  for  the  present  purpose  the  type  may  be  said  to  be  uni- 
formily  pure  in  composition.  The  other  species  are  never  of 
great  commercial  importance. 

Damage  is  confined  to  four  main  causes,  fire,  insects,  fungi  and 
wind.  Of  these  the  most  active,  the  most  serious,  and  yet  the 
easiest  prevented  is  fire.  The  white  man  has  adopted  the 
Indian's  habit  of  frequent  burning  so  that  there  is  scarcely  an 
acre  of  the  type  that  has  not  been  burnt  over  at  one  time  or 
another.  The  danger  is  the  more  insidious  because  the  apparent 
damage  done  is  small.  The  mature  trees  are  thick  barked,  crown 
fires  are  rare  and  a  fire  seems  to  merely  burn  up  old  grass  and  use- 
less fitter.  But  countless  young  trees  are  killed  in  this  way,  the 
soil  is  impoverished  and  an  investigation  reported  by  T.  T. 
Hunger  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  American  Foresters 
for  April,  19 14,  shows  conclusively  that  serious  harm  is  done  the 
mature  timber.  He  concludes  that,  "  each  surface  fire,  no  matter 
how  fight,  kills  a  merchantable  tree  to  each  two  or  three  acres, 
fire  scars  42  per  cent  of  the  remaining  merchantable  trees  so  that 
they  may  fall  victims  to  the  next  high  wind  or  surface  fire,  and 
'  pitches  '  the  butts  of  a  large  proportion  of  the  best  trees." 

But  more  serious  in  the  long  run  than  this  direct  damage  is  the 
indirect  loss  thru  the  trees  being  weakened  by  fires  so  that  they 


90  WESTERN   YELLOW   PINE   TYPE 

fall  an  easy  prey  to  insects  and  fungi.  One  of  the  most  destruc- 
tive members  of  the  genus  Dedroctonus,  or  bark  beetles,  attacks 
western  yellow  pine  and  if  the  conditions  are  favorable  for  its 
rapid  increase  damage  over  a  wide  area  may  result.  For  example 
in  the  Black  Hills  of  South  Dakota  the  numbers  of  this  beetle 
increased  so  rapidly  that  practically  all  the  mature  timber  over 
an  area  of  500,000  acres  was  killed  and  forced  sales  were  neces- 
sary to  salvage  any  of  it.  The  National  Forests  in  California 
are  having  a  similar  experience  at  the  present  time.  Such 
infestations  get  started  because  the  beetles  find  weakened  trees 
in  which  they  may  breed  in  large  enough  numbers  so  that  they 
successfully  attack  vigorous  trees  and  overcome  them  by  sheer 
force  of  numbers.  In  fact  this  habit  of  seeking  out  weakened 
individuals  where  there  are  but  few  of  the  beetles  is  taken  advan- 
tage of  in  combating  infestations  in  the  early  stages.  So  called 
"  trap  "  trees  are  girdled  in  the  late  summer  so  that  the  beetles 
may  lay  their  eggs  in  them.  Then  these  trap  trees  are  felled, 
peeled,  and  the  grubs  destroyed  before  the  adult  beetles  can 
emerge  the  following  spring. 

In  the  same  way  certain  species  of  fungi,  notably  red  rot, 
Trametes  pini,  attack  the  western  yellow  pine  when  trees  have 
been  weakened  by  fire  or  other  causes  and  spread  rapidly  unless 
the  surrounding  timber  is  thoroughly  sound  and  healthy. 

With  the  great  variety  of  climatic  conditions  under  which 
yellow  pine  grows  it  is  natural  that  there  should  be  a  wide  range 
in  rates  of  growth.  The  following  figures  are  for  growth  under 
favorable  natural  conditions  but  do  not  represent  what  can  be 
done  under  intensive  management. 


GROWTH  IN  100  YEARS 

Diameter 

Height 

Inches 
14 
20 
13-2 

Degrees 
48 

n 

Unfortunately  no  accurate  figures  can  be  presented  for  density 
and  yield  per  acre  in  a  given  time.     It  is  only  possible  to  state 


TIMBER  VALUES  91 

in  a  general  way  that  from  7500  to  17,500  board  feet  —  1500  to 
3500  cubic  feet  —  has  been  grown  under  natural  conditions  in 
100  years.  Protection  and  thinning  should,  of  course,  greatly 
increase  these  yields. 

Timber  Values. —  The  cost  of  estimating  stands  of  yellow  pine 
should  be  relatively  low  because  the  topography  is  not  rough,  the 
stands  are  of  a  uniform  density  and  size,  and  the  Government 
section  —  a  square  mile  —  is  the  standard  unit  of  subdivision. 
Hence,  the  cost  per  acre  for  an  estimate  which  shows  the  amount 
and  quahty  of  the  timber,  the  topography  and  the  cost  of  logging 
should  not  exceed  5  cents  for  a  10  per  cent  estimate.  The 
only  feature  that  is  liable  to  increase  this  cost  is  the  presence  of 
box  canyons  which  must  be  crossed.  This  is  always  time  con- 
suming and  sometimes  dangerous. 

A  10  per  cent  estimate  is  usually  intensive  enough  because  of 
the  uniformity  in  the  stands  and  the  present  relatively  low  value 
of  the  timber. 

The  smallest  merchantable  tree  at  the  present  time  is  one  with 
a  top  diameter  of  10  inches  while  logs  can  seldom  be  run  higher 
than  to  a  diameter  of  six  inches  in  the  tops. 

The  average  stumpage  value  of  western  yellow  pine  according 
to  the  1 2th  Census  was  slightly  over  $1  per  M.  This  was  20 
years  ago  and  prices  have  of  course  risen  in  the  meantime  but  the 
fact  remains  that  this  tree  does  not  yield  a  large  per  cent  of  high 
grade  finishing  lumber.  It  is  mostly  used  for  framing  and  rough 
construction  so  that  while  it  is-  true  that  about  1 5  per  cent  of  it 
on  the  average  brought  $30  to  $40  f.o.b.  the  mill  in  1916,  the 
mill  run  sold  for  not  more  than  $20  per  M.  Only  rarely  can 
the  slabs,  edgings  and  tops  be  disposed  of  to  advantage  for  cord- 
wood.  The  average  grades,  the  per  cent  of  each  and  the  price 
they  bring  at  mill  are  given  in  the  table  shown  on  p.  92,  com- 
piled from  data  in  Hunger's"  Western  Yellow  Pine  in  Oregon," 
Bulletin  418,  Department  of  Agriculture. 

The  possibility  of  using  this  species  for  turpentine  deserves 
mention  at  least.  It  was  so  used  in  California  during  the  Civil 
War  when  the  southeastern  supply  was  cut  off  and  can  be  utilized 
again  but  so  far  it  has  not  been  possible  to  compete  with  the 


92 


WESTERN   YELLOW   PINE   TYPE 


B  and  better.. 

C  select 

D  select 

No.  I  shop 

No.  2  shop.. . . 

No.  3  shop 

No.  I  common 
No.  2  common 
No.  3  common 
No.  4  common 


Per  cent  of 
total  cut 

P.O.B.  value 

6 

$35.00 

7 

30.00 

5 

20.00 

lO 

25.00 

i6 

16.00 

7 

11.00 

8 

21  .00 

i6 

14.00 

20 

II  .00 

5 

8.00 

southeast  under  normal  conditions  by  reason  of  the  cheap  negro 
labor  obtainable  in  working  long  leaf  pine.  Hence,  the  turpen- 
tine value  need  not  be  reckoned  in  calculating  the  stumpage  price 
of  the  average  tract. 

The  normal  method  of  utilizing  western  yellow  pine  is  to  fell 
and  buck  the  trees  into  logs  16  feet  long,  bunch  the  logs,  use 
four-wheeled  truck  or  big  wheels  to  get  them  to  the  railroad  and 
then  freight  them  to  the  mill.  Portable  mills  have  not  been  used 
to  any  great  extent  because  the  difficulty  in  getting  water  in 
suitable  quantities  has  made  it  better  to  locate  a  large  mill  in  a 
central  place.  Then  too  such  a  mill  is  better  equipped  to  turn 
out  the  higher  grades.  This  is  an  advantage  since  the  local 
market  will  not  absorb  readily  the  total  annual  cut  and  much  of 
it  must  be  shipped  to  such  middle  western  markets  as  Kansas 
City,  St.  Louis  and  Minneapolis.  Average  costs  in  1914  were  as 
follows: 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  00 

Skidding  and  hauling  to  railway 4  00 

Freight  to  miU,  15  miles i  •  00 

Milling 5  00 

$11 .00 


There  is,  therefore,  a  possible  margin  of  $9.75  for  stumpage 
and  profit  if  an  average  sale  value  of  $20  can  be  secured.  No 
account  need  be  taken  of  possible  returns  from  cordwood  because 


LAND   VALUES 


93 


this  is  too  uncertain.  As  a  matter  of  fact  stumpage  prices  range 
all  the  way  from  $i  to  $6  per  M  with  $3  a  high  average. 

Expressed  in  terms  of  man  hours  and  horse  hours  per  M  the 
costs  of  an  average  operation  would  be  as  follows: 

Man  hours         Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 2 

To  mill 7  15 

Milling 4 

13  IS 

Railway  hauling  is  only  about  half  labor  costs  so  that  man  hours 
are  of  Httle  value  for  it. 

Land  Values. —  Besides  its  value  for  the  production  of  timber 
yellow  pine  land  can  frequently  be  used  for  agriculture.  For 
this  purpose,  however,  it  cannot  have  more  than  a  5  per  cent 
slope  because  otherwise  it  cannot  be  irrigated  and  will  not  "  dry 
farm  "  well  by  reason  of  the  rapid  drainage.  But  if  fairly  level 
the  land  can  be  used  for  any  crop  suited  to  the  climate.  In  fact 
much  of  the  homesteading  in  the  foothills  of  the  Rockies  has 
been  done  in  this  type  and  very  good  results  obtained  where  there 
was  opportunity  to  irrigate.  The  cost  of  clearing  the  land  for 
cultivation  is  not  excessive  because  there  are  relatively  few 
stumps.  Fifty  dollars  an  acre  ought  to  clear  and  fence  such 
land  and  the  net  annual  returns  should  total  $5,  so  that  its  pro- 
ductive value  at  3  per  cent  would  be  over  $100. 

As  a  private  investment  the  growing  of  yellow  pine  is  not 
attractive.  Even  with  a  stand  of  15,000  board  feet  in  100 
years  and  interest  at  3  per  cent  a  reasonable  return  cannot  be 
secured.  Where  other  considerations  enter,  however,  the  returns 
are  well  worth  while.  For  example,  the  National  Forests  yield 
not  only  timber  but  watershed  protection  for  the  irrigation 
interests  and  support  annually  a  large  number  of  cattle  and  sheep. 
Hence  from  the  public  point  of  view  the  highest  use  to  which  any 
of  the  yellow  pine  land  not  fit  and  needed  for  tillage  can  be  put 
is  the  raising  of  timber  as  the  main  crop.  It  would  therefore 
appear  that  land  of  this  type  should  not  be  cleaned  for  tillage 
unless  it  can  be  irrigated  or  dry  farmed.  The  tendency  has  been 
to  clear  up  more  land  than  can  be  properly  farmed. 


94  WESTERN  YELLOW   PINE   TYPE 

While  grazing  does  not  bring  large  returns  in  itselt  —  5  to  10 
cents  per  acre  per  annum  —  it  deserves  consideration  as  a  second- 
ary source  of  income  since  it  can  be  practiced  in  connection  with 
forestry.  After  suitable  reproduction  has  been  secured  cattle 
and  horses  will  do  Uttle  damage  to  the  young  trees,  and  even 
sheep  may  be  allowed  to  graze  the  area  as  soon  as  the  trees  get 
•more  than  10  feet  high. 

Titles. —  Land  disputes  are  rare  within  this  type  because  the 
boundary  lines  are  plainly  marked  and  there  have  not  been 
many  changes  of  title  since  the  Federal  Government  issued 
patent.  For  land  of  level  or  gently  rolling  character  the  mile 
square  section  system  of  subdivision  is  ideal.  Furthermore  there 
has  been  little  excuse  for  slipshod  work  in  surveying  so  that  yel- 
low pine  land  is  generally  well  marked  and  accurately  subdivided. 
Likewise  the  record  of  transfers  is  generally  free  from  the  con- 
fusion that  is  found  in  the  archives  of  the  counties  which  have 
been  settled  for  50  years  or  more. 


CHAPTER  XI 
LODGEPOLE  PINE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. — This  type  occurs  in  the  higher  mountains 
—  at  least  4000  feet  above  sea  level  —  of  Colorado,  Utah, 
Wyoming,  Idaho  and  Montana.  Altitudinally  it  is  the  next 
important  timber  type  above  the  western  yellow  pine  and  reaches 
nearly  to  tree  line  on  some  of  the  lower  and  more  protected 
mountains.  Generally,  however,  it  gives  place  to  Engelmann 
spruce  and  alpine  fir  before  tree  hne  is  reached. 

Since  it  occurs  at  a  relatively  high  altitude  the  precipitation 
is  naturally  greater  than  in  the  yellow  pine  type.  Exact  figures 
are  not  available  but  it  seems  safe  to  estimate  that  the  annual 
precipitation  averages  between  25  and  35  inches.  The  mean 
annual  temperature  is  low,  40  degrees  to  45  degrees,  as  might  be 
surmised  from  the  altitude.  Likewise  a  high  percentage  of  the 
year  has  temperatures  below  freezing.  In  fact  the  growing 
season  does  not  exceed  five  months. 

From  the  previous  description  it  follows  that  the  topography 
is  generally  steep  and  rough.  Lodgepole  pine  does,  however, 
need  a  fair  degree  of  soil  depth  so  that  it  is  never  found  in  abund- 
ance on  ledges  or  rock  cKffs. 

Usually  no  other  species  is  vigorous  enough  to  contest  success- 
fuDy  with  lodgepole  pine  for  the  possession  of  soil  adapted  to  the 
latter.  It  is  a  proHiic  seeder,  a  thrifty  grower  and  has  few 
enemies.  Hence  it  usually  occurs  in  pure  stands  over  large  areas. 
Only  occasionally  are  there  small  groups  of  aspen,  Douglas  fir, 
alpine  fir,  white  bark  pine  or  western  larch  mixed  with  it. 

While  there  is  great  range  in  the  growth  conditions  the  follow- 
ing figures  give  a  fair  notion  of  what  lodgepole  pine  can  do  under 
good  conditions  in  50  and  100  years. 

so  years  loo  years 

Diameter 7.5  inches  9  inches 

Height 46      feet  68  feet 

Density  per  acre 1250  600 

Yield  per  acre 2250  cubic  feet  10,800  board  feet 

95 


LODGEPOLE   PINE   TYPE 


Fig.  9.     Distribution  of  the  Lodgepole  Pine  and  Engelmann  Spruce  Types 


TIMBER   VALUES  97 

Timber  Values.  —  The  roughness  of  the  topography  is  the  only- 
factor  that  makes  estimating  in  the  lodgepole  pine  type  expensive. 
The  stands  are  uniform  in  size  and  density  and  the  section  cor- 
ners are  easy  to  find.  Therefore,  a  cost  of  five  cents  per  acre  for 
a  10  per  cent  estimate  is  representative  of  average  conditions. 

Lodgepole  pine  is  not  quoted  separately  in  the  census  figures 
because  it  is  only  of  importance  locally,  but  the  stumpage  price  for 
any  particular  tract  can  be  figured  by  deducting  the  cost  of  log- 
ging and  milhng  from  the  sale  value  of  the  finished  product.  On 
account  of  its  small  size  —  very  few  trees  attain  a  diameter  breast- 
high  of  more  than  14  inches  —  relatively  little  lodgepole  pine  is 
sawn.  Most  of  it  is  used  in  the  round  as  mining  timbers,  fencing 
or  hewn  railroad  ties.  Moreover,  the  little  that  does  go  thru  the 
sawmill  makes  narrow,  low  grade  lumber  which  sells  for  less  than 
$30  per  M  at  the  mill.  The  market  for  slabs  and  edgings  is  neg- 
lible  and  the  tops  are  so  small  that  little  cordwood  can  be  cut 
from  them,  so  that  no  return  can  be  expected  except  that  to  be 
obtained  from  the  main  bote. 

Since  a  tie  operation  is  more  typical  than  a  lumbering  job 
figures  mil  be  given  for  the  former  in  order  to  show  what  the  cost 
of  getting  lodgepole  timber  in  shape  for  market  is  under  normal 
conditions. 

Per  tie 

Felling,  hacking  and  peeling 15  cents 

Hauling  four  miles  to  railway 15     " 

Total  cost 30    " 

Value  at  railway 40     " 

Margin  for  stumpage  and  profit. 10     " 

To  convert  this  margin  per  tie  to  the  basis  of  M  feet  it  is  neces- 
sary to  multiply  by  30  since  the  average  tie  contains  33^  board 
feet.  Hence  the  margin  per  M  is  $3.33.  Actual  stumpage  prices 
range  from  $1  to  $5  per  M  with  an  average  of  not  more  than  $3. 
Even  this  is  relatively  high  for  such  small  sized  lumber  but  lodge- 
pole pine  occurs  in  a  region  where  large  timber  is  scarce  and  the 
settlers  are  glad  to  get  almost  anything  in  the  way  of  wood. 

In  man  hours  and  horse  hours  the  average  costs  per  M  will  be  as 
follows: 


98  LODGEPOLE  PINE  TYPE 

Man  hours         Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 4 

To  mill 7  IS 

Milling .-, 4 

15  IS 

Land  Values. —  Most  lodgepole  land  is  too  rough  to  be  tilled  so 
that  its  main  value  is  for  the  production  of  timber.  For  this  pur- 
pose alone  it  will  not  pay  a  profit  but  a  combination  of  timber 
raising,  grazing  and  watershed  protection  does  yield  well. 

Where  the  land  is  not  too  rough  and  steep  to  till  and  irrigate 
it  commands  the  same  prices  as  raw  yellow  pine  land,  $5  to  $10 
per  acre,  and  has  the  same  productive  capacity. 

For  grazing  it  is  not  so  valuable  because  the  shade  of  lodgepole 
pine  stands  does  not  permit  the  more  valuable  grasses  to  thrive. 
Hence,  only  so  called  "  weeds  "  are  found  in  this  type  and  they 
are  not  palatable  except  to  sheep.  Five  acres  are  needed  to 
keep  a  full  grown  ewe  or  wether  during  the  summer  which  means 
a  value  of  about  $2  per  acre. 

Titles. — •  Titles  are  in  all  respects  similar  to  those  in  the  yellow 
pine  type  except  that  the  land  is  less  liable  to  have  been  surveyed 
because  of  its  greater  inaccessibihty. 


CHAPTER  XII 
ENGELMANN   SPRUCE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  Capping  the  tops  of  the  higher  peaks  in 
northern  New  Mexico,  Colorado,  Utah  and  Wyoming  are  unique 
stands  of  timber  which  in  their  luxuriance  and  density  remind 
one  of  the  tree  growth  of  the  northeast  Qr  northwest.  In  these 
Engelmann  spruce  is  the  dominant  species.  Naturally  they  do 
not  occupy  any  considerable  area  because  the  peaks  extend 
upwards  and  not  outwards  and  they  are  not  much  known  either 
commercially  or  scenically.  But  no  description  of  Rocky  Moun- 
tain timber  resources  would  be  complete  without  a  reference  to 
this  very  distinct  and  locally  important  type. 

On  account  of  the  inaccessibility  and  bleakness  of  their  location 
no  accurate,  long  time  climate  records  have  been  kept  within 
this  type.  It  is  merely  possible  to  say  in  a  general  way  that  the 
precipitation  is  evenly  distributed,  relatively  heavy,  at  least 
35  inches,  and  that  the  mean  annual  temperature  is  below  35 
degrees.  Hence  it  follows  that  the  gro^\ing  season  is  short.  In 
fact  at  least  eight  months  of  the  year  have  average  temperatures 
below  freezing. 

As  stated  above  this  type  is  confined  to  the  higher  peaks  so  that 
the  topography  is  rough  and  steep  and  the  soil  shallow.  Like 
its  eastern  relative,  the  red  spruce,  Engelmann  spruce  can  cHng 
to  mountain  sides  where  the  actual  mineral  soil  is  not  deeper  than 
a  few  inches. 

Normally  the  stands  are  nearly  pure  in  this  type  but  on  the 
lower  edges  on  the  deeper  soiled  sites  lodgepole  pine,  Colorado 
blue  spruce,  aspen  and  Douglas  fir  occur.  In  the  southern  part 
of  its  range  Engelmann  spruce  is  also  occasionally  associated  with 
bristle  cone  and  limber  pine.  It  loses  its  capacity  to  dominate 
as  it  approaches  the  Canadian  line.  For  example  in  northern 
Idaho  pure  stands  are  very  rare  and  Umited  in  extent  but  mixtures 

99 


lOO  ENGELMANN  SPRUCE  TYPE 

in  which  spruce  is  found  with  Douglas  fir,  lodgepole  pine,  western 
larch,  silver  pine,  hemlock  and  western  red  cedar  are  not  uncom- 
mon. The  only  other  species  that  has  the  same  tolerance  for 
the  thin  soil  and  high  wind  of  the  mountain  summits  as  Engel- 
mann  spruce  is  alpine  iir.but  it  is  seldom  more  than  a  subordinate 
associate.  The  merchantable  contents  vary  from  3000  to  50,000 
feet  with  an  average  of  5000  feet  per  acre. 

As  might  be  expected  from  the  rigorous  climate  and  thin  soil 
growth  is  slow.  The  following  figures  show  what  100  years  will 
give  under  average  conditions: 

Diameter 6.2  inches 

Height 60  feet 

Timber  Values. —  The  cost  of  estimating  is  neither  cheap  nor 
very  expensive.  Five  cents  an  acre  should  give  a  10  per  cent 
estimate.  The  factors  that  make  for  cheapness  are  uniformity 
of  stand  and  size  of  timber  while  the  rugged  topography  and  rela- 
tive inaccessibility  increase  the  cost.  Inaccessibility  has  two 
phases  which  may  both  be  of  importance.  In  the  first  place  the 
Engelmann  spruce  type  is  usually  a  long  distance  from  roads  and 
hence  transportation  is  slow,  difficult  and  costly.  Secondly, 
the  fact  that  the  type  is  hard  to  reach  reduces  the  probabihty  of 
its  having  been  surveyed.  The  Land  Office  has  naturally  con- 
centrated on  the  more  accessible  pubUc  land  in  the  foothills 
which  was  in  demand  for  tillage  and  grazing  as  well  as  for  the 
timber.  Furthermore,  even  when  surveys  have  been  made 
they  are  likely  to  be  poor  in  quality.  The  contract  method  of 
surveying  is  not  conducive  to  accurate  work  under  difficulties 
because  the  surveyor's  main  object  is  to  cover  the  largest  possible 
area  at  the  minimum  cost.  In  addition  the  inspection  of  moun- 
tain survey  work  has  been  notoriously  lax.  The  temptation  to 
hurry  over  the  inaccessible  mountain  peaks  is  very  strong  and 
only  the  most  conscientious  inspectors  have  resisted  the  impulse 
to  be  lenient  with  contract  work  in  such  localities.  This  faihng 
of_  inspectors  has  been  taken  advantage  of  to  the  fullest  by  the 
contract  surveyors. 

The  following  minimum  diameter  Kmits  are  used  in  esti- 
matmg  timber  within  this  type: 


TIMBER   VALUES 


Species 


Engelmann  spruce 

Alpine  fir 

Lodgepole  pine 

Douglas  fir 

Aspen 


Top  diameter 


Lodgepole  pine  is  cut  to  a  smaller  size  because  its  taper  is  less 
abrupt  than  the  other  species.  Aspen  may  be  cut  to  eight  inches 
in  diameter  breast-high  since  it  is  the  best  firewood  to  be  had  in 
the  southern  Rocky  Mountains  and  much  sought  for  this  purpose. 
It  is  the  only  species  that  should  be  estimated  in  cords. 

None  of  the  species  in  this  t)rpe  are  listed  separately  in  the 
Census  because  they  are  of  only  minor  commercial  importance  as 
they  grow  in  the  type.  This  does  not  mean  that  Douglas  fir, 
for  example,  is  not  an  important  timber  tree  but  only  that  the 
individuals  which  are  found  in  this  type  do  not  reach  the  general 
market.  When  used  at  all  they  are  employed  for  local  purposes 
only.  Hence  there  do  not  exist  any  figures  which  show  the  varia- 
tion in  stumpage  prices  for  the  species  found  in  this  type  in  dif- 
ferent states  and  in  various  years.  It  is  only  possible  to  say  in 
a  general  way  that  no  stumpage  in  this  type  is  worth  more  than 
$5  per  M.  The  values  applicable  to  individual  tracts  must  be 
figured  out  on  the  basis  of  average  sale  values  and  logging  and 
manufacturing  costs. 

Generally  speaking  logging  costs  are  high  because  of  the 
inaccessibility  and  small  size  of  the  timber.  Its  density  and 
uniformity  of  diameter  and  height  are  the  only  factors  that  help 
to  decrease  the  cost.  Inaccessibility  means  high  cost  of  suppHes 
and  labor  and  small  timber  is  more  expensive  to  buck,  haul  and 
saw,  the  main  items  of  logging  and  manufacturing  cost.  The 
following  figures  are  averages  based  on  the  methods  commonly 
employed  in  this  type  and  representative  of  conditions  in  1915: — 

Per  M 

Felling  and  bucking $r .  50 

Skidding 2  00 

Sawing 4.00 

*7SO 


I02  ENGELMANN   SPRUCE   TYPE 

Portable  mills  are  the  rule  and  they  are  placed  as  near  the  tim- 
ber as  possible.  This  is  why  the  cost  of  getting  the  logs  into  the 
mill  is  low.  But  this  is  offset  by  the  distance  from  market.  A 
mill  set  up  near  the  head  of  a  timbered  gulch  may  be  close  to  its 
source  of  raw  material  but  there  is  always  a  long  haul  to  the  rail- 
road or  the  ranches  in  the  valley  beneath.  Hence  the  sale  value 
at  the  mill  was  seldom  more  than  $15  per  M  in  19 15  for  the 
log  run  and  commonly  less.  This  left  a  possible  margin  for 
stumpage  and  profit  of  $8.50.  This  was  the  maximum.  The 
average  was  nearer  $5  per  M,  nor  could  this  be  materially  in- 
creased by  the  sale  of  firewood.  The  tops  and  slabs  will  seldom 
pay  for  salvaging.     Aspen  is  the  only  good  fire  wood  in  the  type. 

The  costs  in  man  hours  and  horse  hours  will  average  as  follows: 

Man  hours  Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 3 

Skidding  to  mill 3I  42 

Milling 32 


No  appreciable  difference  exists  in  the  average  sale  value  per 
M  of  the  log  run  of  the  different  species,  because  they  are  all 
used  for  the  same  purpose  —  rough  construction.  Of  course  there 
is  variation  in  the  durabihty  and  workability  of  the  species  for 
different  purposes.  For  example,  no  one  would  use  a  spruce 
barn  sill  if  a  Douglas  fir  one  could  be  obtained,  but  the  difference 
in  durabihty  would  amount  to  only  a  few  dollars  per  M  and  per- 
haps be  offset  by  the  greater  usefulness  of  spruce  for  other  pur- 
poses. The  fact  remains  that  nearly  all  the  species  fou.-id  in  the 
Engelmann  spruce  type  can  be  used  interchangeably  in  the  uses 
for  which  they  are  desired  provided  the  sizes  are  right. 

Land  Values.  —  Since  tillage  is  out  of  the  question  on  Engel- 
mann spruce  land  it  has  value  only  for  the  production  of  timber, 
occasionally  for  grazing,  the  protection  of  water  supplies,  and  for 
scenery.  For  the  first  purpose  it  is  not  an  attractive  investment 
for  the  private  individual  because  the  rigorous  climate  inhibits 
rapid  growth  and  the  yields  are  therefore  low  in  spite  of  the 
density  of  the  stands.  This  very  density  reduces  its  value  for 
grazing  because  grass  and  herbs  do  not  find  sunhght  enough  for 


TITLES  103 

their  growth.  Only  sheep  can  find  anything  to  eat  in  this  type. 
But  the  density  is  a  favorable  factor  again  when  it  comes  to  con- 
serving moisture  and  spruce  stands  play  an  important  role  in  this 
way.  They  are  especially  useful  because  they  are  commonly 
located  at  the  heads  of  the  valleys  of  the  streams  which  furnish 
the  suppUes  of  irrigation  water  for  the  valley  farms  below. 
Another  very  important  use  from  the  national  point  of  view  is 
their  scenic  value.  No  one  will  deny  that  much  of  the  beauty 
of  the  higher  Rocky  Mountain  peaks  is  due  to  the  dark  green 
patches  of  Engelmann  spruce  clinging  to  the  mountain  sides. 
We  are  at  last  beginning  to  recognize  this  function  as  a  useful 
one  and  insisting  that  such  mountain  slopes  be  protected  from 
reckless  denudation.  In  other  words  this  intangible  use  has  so 
great  a  value  that  the  public  will  not  permit  cutting  in  which  no 
provision  is  made  for  a  second  crop  and  to  enforce  this  mandate 
has  created  National  Forests  and  Parks  thru  Congress.  Hence, 
lands  which  will  not  pay  dividends  for  the  production  of  timber 
alone  give  handsome  returns  when  the  by-product  uses,  grazing, 
the  prevention  of  erosion,  the  protection  of  water  supplies,  and 
recreation  are  considered.  These  by-product  values  the  pubHc, 
thru  its  agent,  the  Government,  can  afford  to  conserve. 

Titles. —  No  special  difficulty  need  arise  under  this  heading 
when  the  lands  have  been  well  surveyed.  Unfortunately,  for 
reasons  explained  above,  this  is  sometimes  not  the  case.  Hence 
the  location  of  much  of  this  type  is  very  vague  and  the  chain  of 
title  is  correspondingly  confused.  Unsurveyed  lands  cannot 
legally  be  transferred  because  the  title  remains  in  the  Govern- 
ment until  surveys  are  made  and  accepted  by  the  General  Land 
Office. 


CHAPTER  Xm 
SILVER  PINE  TYPE 

General  Conditions. — This  is  a  well  developed  but  restricted 
type  confined  to  northwestern  Montana,  northern  Idaho  and 
northeastern  Washington.  Even  within  this  area  it  is  not  found 
thruout  but  merely  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the  mountains.  It  does 
not  reach  the  upper  slopes  nor  descend  into  the  valleys  but  occurs 
abundantly  only  between  elevations  of  3000  and  6000  feet  above 
sea  level.  This  does  not,  of  course,  mean  that  the  dominant 
species,  silver  pine  (Pinus  monticola,)  is  not  found  above  or 
below  these  elevations.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  descends  to  sea 
level  at  the  Straits  of  Fuca  and  attains  an  elevation  of  10,000  feet 
in  the  Sierras.  But  the  type  is  not  of  commercial  importance 
except  in  the  region  referred  to  above. 

Climate  seems  to  be  the  controlling  factor  in  the  distribution 
of  this  type.  In  general  it  is  moderately  cool  and  moist.  To  be 
specific,  the  total  annual  precipitation  does  not  exceed  40  inches, 
the  mean  annual  temperature  is  about  45°  F.,  and  only  five 
months  have  average  temperatures  above  32°  F.  The  type  is 
probably  restricted  from  extending  to  lower  elevations  because 
the  precipitation  is  less  in  the  semi-arid  valleys  while  its  upper 
limit  seems  to  be  determined  by  the  length  of  the  growing 
season. 

The  topography  of  the  lower  slopes  upon  which  the  type  is 
found  is  characteristically  gentle.  The  type  does  not  reach  up 
on  to  the  upper  slopes.  Hence  the  soil  is  deep  and  alluvial  in 
character  being  derived  mainly  from  the  wash  of  the  slopes  above. 

While  silver  pine  is  the  most  abundant  species  and  the  most 
important  commercially,  red  cedar  (Thuya  occidentalis)  and  hem- 
lock (Tsuga  occidentaUs)  are  also  found  in  the  type.  They 
always  occupy  a  subordinate  position,  however.  Both  are  tol- 
erant enough  to  grow  well  under  the  silver  pine  and  mixed  stands 


GENERAL  CONDITIONS 


lOS 


TOO 300_ 


Fig.  io.     Distribution  of  the  Silver  Pine  Type 


io6 


SILVER   PINE  TYPE 


are  two  storied  with  the  pine  always  on  top.  Stands  may  be 
divided  by  their  composition  into  the  following  groups  or  sub- 
types: 

Stands  per  acre 

Pure  silver  pine 100,000  board  feet  maximum,  30,000  board  feet  average 

Pine  and  red  cedar 200,000  board  feet  maximum,  50,000  board  feet  average 

Pine  and  hemlock 200,000  board  feet  maximum,  50,000  board  feet  average 


Growth  conditions  for  silver  pine  on  good  sites  may 
marized  as  follows: 


be  sum- 


Age 

Diameter 

Height 

Yield  in  board  feet 

Inches 

10 
14 

5° 

70 

100 

25,000 

40,000 

100  years 

60,000 

These  figures  are  simply  estimates  since  there  are  unfortunately 
no  accurate  measurements  for  the  tree  species  in  this  type. 

Damage  may  be  either  negligible  or  very  severe.  Fires,  for 
example,  can  ordinarily  do  little  harm  in  the  type  because  the 
stands  are  so  dense  as  to  keep  the  ground  cover  moist  except  in 
times  of  long  continued  dry  weather.  But  when  the  woods  do 
dry  out  a  fire  that  starts  on  the  ground  quickly  becomes  a  top  fire 
and  kills  the  entire  stand.  Hence,  the  damage  is  appalhng  in  a 
serious  drought.  For  example,  the  fires  of  1910  in  northern 
Idaho  killed  outright  thousands  of  acres  of  silver  pine. 

While  there  are  species  of  insects  which  attack  the  silver 
pine  none  of  them  have  so  far  been  reported  in  large  numbers. 
Three  fungi,  Trametes  pini,  Polyporus  schweinitzii  and  Fomes 
annosus  have,  however,  been  found  to  cause  a  large  amount  of 
heart  rot.  In  the  Cceur  d'Alene  region  of  Idaho  investigation 
showed  7  per  cent  of  the  volume  of  the  stand  affected  by  these 
fungi.  These  studies  by  Weir  and  Hubert  (U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agr., 
Bui.  799)  covered  1400  trees  oh  sevep  National  Forest  sale  areas. 

Timber  Values.  —  In  this  type  as  with  eastern  white  pine  the 
high  value  of  the  timber  makes  an  intensive  estimate  necessary 
so  that  the  cost  is  high  in  spite  of  the  easy  topography  and  uni- 
formity of  composition.     In  fact,  nothing  less  than  a  10  per  cent 


TIMBER  VALUES  107 

estimate  is  safe  in  such  valuable  timber.  As  a  consequence  the 
costs  per  acre  range  from  5  to  10  cents,  with  the  latter  as  a 
safer  figure  if  an  accurate  estimate  is  to  be  made.  Nor  can  the 
relatively  level  topography,  uniformity  of  the  stands  in  compo- 
sition, size  and  density,  and  the  accessibihty  of  the  timber  offset 
this  single  cost  factor.  This  is  in  brief  a  problem  similar  in  every 
way  to  the  estimating  of  Lake  States  white  pine  with  the  single 
exception  that  silver  pine  is  not  so  near  the  market  and  hence 
not  quite  so  valuable. 

The  only  Census  figures  available,  those  for  1900,  give  low 
average  stumpage  values  because  at  the  time  they  were  gathered 
the  white  pine  of  the  "  Central  Empire  "  had  not  been  put  on  the 
market  in  any  large  amount.  The  following  values  obtained  at 
that  time: 

Silver  pine $1 .  50  per  M 

Red  cedar 0.77  per  M 

Hemlock Not  considered  merchantable 

Larch Not  considered  merchantable 

At  present,  however,  stumpage  values  are  much  higher.  This 
is  the  natural  result  of  market  development.  Intrinsically  silver 
pine  is  as  valuable  as  eastern  white  pine  and  can  be  used  for 
exactly  the  same  purposes.  Naturally,  however,  trade  preju- 
dices had  to  be  overcome  before  a  wide  market  could  be  found. 
Furthermore,  a  relatively  low  value  can  only  be  secured  as  long 
as  wood  is  marketed  as  rough  ungraded  lumber.  High  prices 
are  only  paid  for  carefully  graded  lumber  which  is  especially 
selected  for  the  particular  purpose  to  which  it  is  to  be  devoted. 
The  careful  grading  of  silver  pine  only  dates  from  1903  while  the 
sash  and  door  mills  which  now  work  up  the  rough  lumber  into 
semi-finished  form,  are  no  older.  Since,  however,  silver  pine  is 
a  wood  which  can  be  used  for  pattern  work,  cabinet  making,  and 
fine  finishing  it  is  fast  commanding  the  same  sale  value  as  eastern 
white  pine.  This  means  that  the  average  value  of  the  mill  run 
at  Minnesota  transfer  was  $35  to  S40  per  M  board  feet  in  19 10 
based  on  the  following  percentages  of  grades: 

Fine  finishing  lumber 10  per  cent  at  Sioo  =  $10.00 

Sash  and  door  stock 20  per  cent  at      40  =      8.00 

Lower  grades 70  per  cent  at      25  =    17 .  50 

$35-50 


lo8  SILVER    PINE   TYPE 

While  silver  pine  competes  successfully  with  eastern  white 
pine,  the  high  stumpage  prices  which  prevail  in  the  Lake  States 
do  not  hold  good  for  Idaho  and  Montana.  Nor  is  it  reasonable 
to  expect  that  they  should  when  it  is  remembered  that  there  is  a 
long  freight  haul  to  the  eastern  markets.  This  is  in  fact  the  main 
item  of  cost  and  averages  about  $io  per  M.  To  this  must  be 
added  the.  usual  logging  and  milling  charges  so  that  it  is  seldom 
that  there  is  a  margin  of  more  than  $5  per  M  for  profit  and  stump- 
age  value.  The  costs  of  a  typical  operation  in  1910  may  be  sum- 
marized as  follows: 

Per  M 

Felling  and  bucking $1 .  50 

Skidding 2 .  00 

Hauling,  5  miles 5 .  00 

Milling  (sawing,  planing,  seasoning,  etc.) 5 .  50 

Marketing i .  50 

Freight 10.00 

Total  costs $25 .  00 

Average  sale  value .  35  •  00 

Margin  for  profit  and  stumpage 10.00 

Expressed  in  man  hours  and  horse  hours  per  M  these  costs 
would  be: 

Man  hours  Horse  hours 

Felling  and  bucking 2 

Skidding 3  4 

Hauling 9  15 

Milling 7 

21  19 

These  figures  may  be  safely  used  in  estimating  an  average 
"  chance  "  and  presuppose  the  erection  of  a  fair  sized  mill  at  some 
point  on  the  railroad  not  too  far  from  the  timber.  Then  the 
logs  are  either  brought  in  by  the  railroad,  by  tractor  or  by 
horses.  The  latter  are  the  most  expensive  because  they  suffer 
severely  from  the  dust.  Especially  during  the  summer  this 
frequently  gets  to  be  six  inches  or  more  deep  and  only  an  iron 
lunged  traction  engine  can  keep  hauling  thru  it  day  after  day. 
At  the  mill  the  logs  are  washed  and  then  put  thru  the  saw,  the 
plane  and  the  dry  kiln  in  order  to  get  out  of  them  the  highest 
percentage  of  finishing  lumber  which  will  show  a  margin  above  the 


TIMBER  VALUES  109 

transportation  charge  to  the  eastern  markets.  For  the  low  grade 
lumber,  slabs  and  edgings  there  is  no  market  unless  the  miU 
itself  can  use  them  for  fuel.  Many  plants  pay  as  much  as  50 
cents  per  M  srniply  to  dispose  of  them.  Consequently  the 
whole  profit  of  the  operation  must  be  sought  in  the  lumber  which 
will  repay  shipment  cost. 

The  three  main  uses  of  red  cedar  are  for  shingles,  poles  and 
piling.  For  these  purposes  it  commanded  the  following  prices 
in  1915: 

Shingles: 

Extra  stars,  $1.43  per  thousand  shingles. 
Extra  clears,  $1.71  per  thousand  shingles. 
Approximately,  $13  per  M  board  feet  f.o.b.  the  mill. 

Poles: 

Prices  ranged  from  55  cents  for  20-foot,  4-inch  top  diame- 
ter pole  to  $33  for  an  80-foot,  9-inch  diameter  pole  or 
from  $25  to  $60  per  M  board  feet.  On  account  of  the 
higher  proportion  of  small  size  poles  S40  per  M  is  a  fair 
average  price  f.o.b.  the  shipping  point. 

Piling  sells  for  sHghtly  better  prices  than  poles  but  must  gen- 
erally be  straighter  and  sounder. 

The  cost  of  logging  shingle  material  and  making  the  shingles 
averaged  as  follows  in  191 5: 

Per  M  board  feet 

Cutting $2 .  °o 

Skidding '^■^ 

Transportation  to  mill 2 .00 

Milling 500 

$10. oc 

Poles  and  piles  costs  were  as  follows: 

Per  M  board  feet 

Cutting  and  peeling $5  ■  00 

Hauling 20.00 

Storage,  loading,  etc 150° 

$40.00 


no  SILVER  PINE  TYPE 

Consequently  the  margins  for  profit  and  stumpage  were  $3  per 
M  in  the  case  of  shingles  and  $5  for  poles  and  piles. 

Western  hemlock  is  similar  to  its  eastern  relative  in  properties, 
so  that  it  can  be  used  for  the  same  purposes.  There  is  not, 
however,  as  good  a  market  for  it.  None  of  it  is  of  sufficiently 
high  quality  to  be  shipped  across  the  continent  so  that  it  is  all 
used  locally  for  dimension  lumber  and  rough  boarding.  For 
these  purposes  it  commanded  an  average  price  of  $14  per  M 
f.o.b.  the  mills  in  191 5.  Since  the  logging,  milHng  and  other  costs 
amounted  to  at  least  $10  there  was  only  a  margin  of  a  few  dollars 
for  profit  and  stumpage. 

Land  Values.  —  As  explained  above  in  discussing  the  typical 
soil  of  the  type  it  is  commonly  a  deep,  well  drained  alluvial  loam. 
This  is,  of  course,  first  rate  agriculturally  when  the  slopes  are 
right  for  cultivation  and  in  this  connection  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  erosion  is  not  the  determining  factor  with  reference 
to  the  slope  but  suitabihty  for  irrigation.  Ob\dously  steep 
slopes  cannot  be  irrigated  successfully  without  an  expensive  sys- 
tem of  terraces  so  that  only  the  level  stretches  have  been  sought 
for  tillage.  Still  another  factor  has  restricted  the  use  of  this  type 
for  agriculture  and  that  is  the  cost  of  clearing  the  land.  With 
the  large  number  of  stumps,  frequently  over  150  per  acre,  and 
the  high  cost  of  labor,  land  can  seldom  be  cleared  for  tillage  for 
less  than  $75  per  acre.  Such  a  large  initial  investment  demands 
high  returns  such  as  can  only  be  secured  by  a  local  market.  As 
a  consequence  clearing  has  as  a  rule  been  confined  to  those  level 
pieces  of  soil  which  can  be  cheaply  irrigated  and  which  He  close 
enough  to  a  town  to  insure  an  eager  demand  for  the  hay,  vege- 
tables and  fruit  raised.  In  other  words,  this  is  not  a  small 
grain  soil  but  one  where  the  cost  of  clearing  enforces  intensive 
cultivation.  For  the  same  reason  grazing  is  not  extensively 
practised.  The  natural  openings  in  the  woods  are  few,  mainly 
beaver  meadows,  and  the  crown  cover  is  too  dense  to  permit 
abundant  grass  or  weed  growth.  Clearing  the  woods  for  grazing 
is,  of  course,  out  of  the  question. 

For  growing  trees  this  type  has  a  value  of  at  least  $5  per  acre. 
The  value  per  acre  for  grazing  is  much  less  than  this,  $1  per  acre, 


LAND   TITLES  III 

while  the  tillage  value  may  be  $ioo  an  acre  if  slope  and  market 
conditions  are  right.  Generally  speaking,  however,  the  highest 
use  for  at  least  90  per  cent  of  the  type  is  the  production  of  saw 
logs. 

Land  Titles. —  Northern  Idaho  and  northwestern  Montana  are 
new  regions  but  recently  surveyed  so  that  there  are  few  cases  in 
which  title  cannot  be  traced  directly  back  to  the  Federal  or 
State  Government.  The  surveys  themselves  are  for  the  most 
part  well  done  because  the  high  quahty  of  the  timber,  the  poten- 
tial agricultural  value  of  the  soil,  and  the  presence  of  mineral 
deposits  have  all  conspired  to  secure  good  surveys  from  the 
General  Land  Office. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
SUGAR  PINE   TYPE 

General  Conditions.  —  The  sugar  pine  type  is  one  of  the  illus- 
trations of  how  favorable  the  cHmate  on  our  Pacific  Coast  is  for 
the  growth  of  trees.  It  lies  immediately  above  the  giant  sequoia 
type  on  the  western  slopes  of  the  Sierra  and  Coast  ranges  in 
southern  Oregon  and  northern  California  and  merges  on  the  north 
into  the  luxuriant  Douglas  fir  type,  the  heaviest  yielding  timber 
type  in  the  world.  In  other  words,  the  sugar  pine  type  is  that 
association  of, trees  which  has  developed  the  capacity  to  thrive 
under  conditions  which  are  not  moist  and  warm  enough  for  the 
sequoias  and  are  too  warm  for  the  best  growth  of  Douglas  fir. 

Commercially  the  type  is  of  importance  from  Douglas  County, 
Oregon,  to  Kern  County,  CaUfornia,  along  the  Sierra  Range,  a 
distance  of  500  miles.  In  the  Coast  Range  the  north  and  south 
extent  is  less,  200  miles  from  Jackson  County  in  Oregon  to  Glenn 
County,  CaHfornia.  In  an  east  and  west  direction  the  type 
ranges  from  50  miles  to  100  miles  in  width  with  an  average  of 
60  miles.  There  is,  consequently,  roughly  40,000  square  miles 
included  within  the  type.  Much  of  this  area  is,  however,  sparsely 
timbered.  Three-fourths  of  the  total  stand  is  concentrated  in 
the  mountainous  portions  of  Siskiyou,  Trinity  and  Shasta  Coun- 
ties, CaHfornia. 

Altitudinally  the  type  ranges  from  3000  to  9000  feet  above  sea 
level  but  in  any  particular  locaHty  there  is  seldom  a  variation  of 
more  than  3000  feet.  In  other  words,  where  the  type  descends 
within  3000  feet  of  the  sea  as  in  the  northern  Sierras  it  does  not 
ascend  beyond  6000  feet  while  in  the  southern  Sierras  the  range 
is  from  6000  to  9000  feet. 

The  climate  of  the  type  has  certain  marked  characteristics 
which  differentiate  it  from  that  of  its  neighbors.  As  stated  above 
the  growing  season  is  shorter  and  the  available  moisture  less  than 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


113 


Fio.  II.     Distribution  of  the  Sugar  Pine  Type 


114  SUGAR  PINE  TYPE 

in  the  sequoia  type  while  the  Douglas  fir  type  on  the  north  has  a 
shorter  growing  season  but  much  more  precipitation.  To  be 
specific,  sugar  pine  and  its  associates  thrive  best  with  an  annual 
precipitation  of  at  least  40  inches  altho  they  can  endure  a  mini- 
mum of  20  inches.  Likewise,  the  largest  trees,  10  feet  in  diameter 
and  200  feet  in  height  and  scaling  over  25,000  feet,  are  only  found 
where  the  growing  season  is  at  least  seven  months  long.  Like 
the  rest  of  CaHfornia  the  heat  of  summer  in  this  type  is  unrelieved 
by  showers.  Fully  four-fifths  of  the  precipitation  falls  during 
the  early  spring,  late  fall  and  winter. 

As  was  seen  in  discussing  the  location  and  extent  of  the  type 
it  is  essentially  a  mountain  form  of  vegetation.  The  valleys  are 
too  hot  and  dry  to  allow  tree  growth.  At  the  other  extreme 
sugar  pine  does  not  reach  the  summits  of  the  Sierras,  at  least  as 
a  commercial  tree,  because  of  the  cold.  The  type  may,  therefore, 
be  characterized  as  a  middle  slope  type.  From  this  it  naturally 
follows  that  the  soil  is  of  medium  depth  because  great  accumula- 
tions of  alluvial  soil  are  not  found  on  mountain  slopes  but  still 
the  grades  are  gradual  enough  so  that  the  bed  rock  is  covered  in 
most  places  with  a  moderate  layer  of  soil.  As  with  other  forms 
of  tree  growth  the  chemical  composition  of  the  soil  has  Kttle 
effect  upon  the  growth  of  sugar  pine  and  its  associates.  The 
physical  characters  of  the  soil  are  the  controlHng  factors,  reason- 
able depth,  good  drainage  and  good  capillarity. 

By  composition  the  type  may  be  divided  into  two  subtypes  or 
cover  types,  the  sugar  pine-yellow  pine  subtype  and  the  sugar 
pine-fir  subtype.  The  former  is  the  more  abundant  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  type's  range  since  it  is  an  association  of  trees 
which  are  well  suited  to  the  hot,  dry  summers  of  the  middle  and 
southern  Sierras.  The  important  species  in  order  of  their  abund- 
ance are  as  follows: 

Per  cent  by  volume 

Sugar  pine 25 

Western  yellow  pine 20 

White  fir 15 

Douglas  fir 15 

Incense  cedar 10 

Jeffrey  pine 10 

Sequoias 5 

100 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS  115 

Stands  in  this  subtype  range  from  60,000  Ijoard  feet  per  acre  on 
the  moister  sites  within  its  range  to  2000  board  feet  on  the  drier 
sites  with  an  average  of  20,000  board  feet. 

The  sugar  pine-fir  subtype,  on  the  other  hand,  is  character- 
istic of  the  northern  part  of  the  type's  range  and  is  found  where 
the  climate  is  moist  and  cool  enough  for  Douglas  fir.  The 
average  stand  per  acre  is  30,000  board  feet  with  a  range  from 
150,000  board  feet  to  5000  board  feet.  The  composition  by  vol- 
ume is  as  follows: 

Per  cent 

Sugar  pine 30 

Douglas  6r 40 

White  fir 30 

This  subtype  occupies  a  much  smaller  area  than  the  sugar  pine- 
yellow  pine  subtype. 

Growth  within  the  type  is  summarized  in  the  following  table: 


25  years 

50  years 

75  years 

100  years 


Sugar     Yellow    Incense 
pine         pine        cedar 


Inches 
4 


Height  in  feet 


Yield  per  acre 
all  species 


board  feet 

400 

1600 

4000 

7300 


These  figures  are  low  because  they  have  come  from  the  measure- 
ment of  virgin  timber.  Stands  under  management  can  be 
expected  to  grow  much  more  rapidly  because  the  better  species 
could  be  aided  to  dominate  the  poorer  individuals  at  an  early  age 
and  thus  shorten  materially  the  struggle  for  supremacy.  The 
yield,  particularly,  can  be  much  increased.  This  will  come, 
however,  by  making  the  stands  more  dense  so  that  more  trees 
will  grow  per  acre.  Virgin  stands  have  been  greatly  decimated 
by  fires,  insects  and  fungi  but  there  is  no  reason  why  reasonable 
care  may  not  prevent  the  greater  part  of  these  losses. 

Fire  is,  as  always,  the  main  source  of  damage  in  this  type.  On 
account  of  the  openness  of  the  stand  fires  do  not,  however,  get 
ofif  the  ground  and  burn  the  tops  except  in  rare  cases  where  a  long 


Il6  SUGAR   PINE   TYPE 

continued  drought  is  followed  by  very  high  wind.  As  a  conse- 
quence only  the  small  trees  are  killed  outright  but  the  larger 
trees  are  injured  at  the  butt.  This  is  particularly  the  case  on  a 
hillside  where  leaves,  cones  and  branches  collect  on  the  upper  side 
of  the  tree  and  form  an  accumulation  of  inflammable  material 
that  will  burn  long  enough  and  hard  enough  to  make  deep  scars. 
Such  damage  is  not  so  serious  in  itself  as  in  its  indirect  effect  in 
weakening  the  trees  so  that  they  are  more  susceptible  to  insect 
and  fungus  injury.  Similar  results  follow  breakage  by  light- 
ning, wind,  and  snow.  In  such  damaged  trees  bark  beetles  of 
the  genera  Dendroctonus  and  Buprestidas  reproduce  in  numbers 
great  enough  to  attack  live  timber  successfully.  Losses  of  5 
to  10  per  cent  of  the  total  stand  are  not  uncommon  in  this  way. 

While  several  species  of  fungi  attack  the  weakened  trees  in 
this  type  no  serious  damage  to  sound,  Hving  timber  has  been  yet 
reported.  In  fact,  sugar  pine  when  protected  from  fire  seems 
unusually  resistant  to  diseases. 

Timber  Values. —  On  the  whole  the  advantages  offset  the  dis- 
advantages in  estimating  in  the  sugar  pine  type.  The  stands  are 
open  with  comparatively  little  underbrush.  This  means  few 
trees  per  acre  with  few  shrubs  and  vines  to  impede  the  estimator's 
progress.  Then,  too,  the  trees  are  large  size  and  a  few  big  trees 
are  easier  to  estimate  than  the  many  small  trees  which  it  would 
take  to  make  up  the  same  volume.  Another  aid  is  the  high  pro- 
portion of  the  type  which  has  been  surveyed  so  that  tracts  may 
be  readily  located  on  the  ground.  These  factors  make  it  pos- 
sible to  get  fairly  good  results  from  a  10  per  cent  estimate  where 
areas  of  more  than  100  acres  are  to  be  valued.  Hence  the  cost 
need  seldom  exceed  10  cents  per  acre  in  spite  of  the  inaccessi- 
bihty  of  some  of  the  mountain  tracts  and  the  fact  that  the  type 
is  usually  a  mixture  of  several  species. 

Separate  stumpage  prices  for  the  different  species  in  the  type 
were  unheard  of  two  decades  ago.  Private  holdings  of  a  size 
great  enough  to  be  lumbered  economically  were  secured  by 
grouping  timber  and  stone  claims  which  were  bought  at  a  flat 
rate  of  $2.50  per  acre  from  the  Government  or  approximately 
15  cents  per  M  board  feet.     From  this  minimum  there  has  been 


TIMBER  VALUES 


117 


a  steady  increase  until  in  1900  accessible  sugar  pine  was  worth 
$1  per  M;  in  19 15  the  following  prices  prevailed  in  private  sales: 


Average 


imimum 


Sugar  pine. . . . 
Yellow  pine.  .  . 
Douglas  fir.  .  . 

White  fir 

Incense  cedar. 


$3-oo 
2.50 


$2.50 


$1.50 
1 .00 


On  the  National  Forests  the  highest  price  which  has  been  paid 
for  sugar  pine  is  $3.50  per  M  feet  (1916). 

The  uses  to  which  sugar  pine  lumber  is  put  depend  upon  the 
distance  from  the  place  of  manufacture.  In  CaUfornia  the 
important  industries  depending  upon  this  species  in  whole  or 
part  are  the  box  makers,  and  the  manufacturers  of  sashes,  doors, 
blinds,  and  general  millwork.  In  the  east  only  the  higher  grades 
appear  because  they  alone  can  stand  the  freight  rate  of  $8  to  $15 
per  M  required  to  transport  lumber  to  the  Mississippi  valley  and 
Atlantic  seaboard.  Hence,  east  of  the  Mississippi  sugar  pine 
is  only  in  demand  for  the  high  grade  uses  which  the  native  white 
pine  cannot  supply  more  cheaply.  It  is  therefore  seldom  used 
for  boxes  and  packing  but  is  generally  found  in  the  planing  mills 
and  manufacturing  establishments  that  need  wide  and  clear  stock. 
For  such  purposes  it  is  technically  quahfied  to  supplant  eastern 
white  pine  which  has  been  the  standard  for  two  centuries  both 
here  and  abroad. 

In  general  the  wood  of  sugar  pine  may  be  briefly  described  as 
moderately  hard,  heavy,  strong  and  stiff  but  straight  grained 
and  smooth  textured.  It  shrinks,  sweUs  and  warps  very  httle  on 
exposure  to  weather  but  is  only  fairly  durable  in  contact  with  the 
ground.  Altho  resinous  it  will  not  impart  undesirable  odors  or 
flavors  to  articles  packed  in  it. 

Its  sale  value  at  the  mill  depends  upon  the  quality.  Five 
main  use  classes  are  distinguished:  thick  finish,  siding,  factory 
plank  or  shop  common  graded  for  door  cuttings,  common  lumber, 
and  thick  common  lumber  (tank  stock  and  step  planks).     These 


Ii8  SUGAR   PINE  TYPE 

are  commonly  further  subdivided  into  Nos.  i,  2  and  3  clear, 
select  Nos.  i,  2  and  3  shop,  Nos.  i,  2,3,  common,  and  box.  The 
percentages  of  the  various  grades  in  the  mill  run  vary  greatly 
with  the  stands.  In  general  the  larger  trees  are  found  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  type's  range  while  those  on  the  northern 
Hmit  yield  less  wide  clear  lumber.  However,  the  following  figures 
give  a  notion  of  average  conditions: 

Grade  Average  value 

Clear  and  select 20  per  cent  at  $40  per  M  =  $8.00 

Shop 30  per  cent  at    25  per  M  =  7 .  50 

Common 30  per  cent  at    15  per  M  =  4.50 

Box 20  per  cent  at    12  per  M  =  2 .40 

100  per  cent  $22 .40  average  mill  run  value. 

These  prices  are  for  191 2.  Since  then  there  has  been  an  increase 
of  about  100  per  cent. 

Western  yellow  pine  may  be  briefly  described  as  a  poor  quality 
of  sugar  pine.  It  has  practically  the  same  properties  and  hence 
uses  but  does  not  yield  so  much  high  grade  lumber  because  of  the 
larger  amount  of  pitch.  This  is  not,  however,  a  drawback  when 
durability  is  desired  and  for  rough  construction  lumber  for  use 
outdoors  unpainted  or  in  contact  with  the  ground  yellow  pine  is 
better  than  sugar  pine.  Nor  for  such  purposes  is  its  weight  a 
drawback.  It  is  a  third  heavier  than  sugar  pine.  The  value  of 
the  average  mill  run  may  be  computed  as  follows  based  on  191 2 
figures : 

Clear  and  select 15  per  cent  at  $35  = 

Shop 25  per  cent  at    20  = 

Common 30  per  cent  at    15  = 

Box 30  per  cent  at    12  = 

100  per  cent 

Detailed  figures  by  grades  cannot  be  given  for  the  average 
sale  value  of  Douglas  fir,  white  fir  and  incense  cedar  but  they 
are  lower  than  those  of  sugar  and  yellow  pine  because  they 
supply  lower  uses.  Douglas  fir  while  preeminent  for  rough  con- 
struction purposes  is  not  soft  enough  to  make  good  finishing  and 
pattern  makers'  lumber.  White  fir  does  not  season  well,  decays 
rapidly,  is  weak  and  not  of  large  size  so  that  the  greater  part  of 


$5 

25 

5 

00 

4 

50 

3 

60 

$18 

35 

TIMBER   VALUES  II9 

it  is  used  for  boxmaking.  Incense  cedar  finds  its  widest  use  as 
shingles  altho  it  is  occasionally  employed  for  interior  finish. 
The  average  mill  prices  at  present  common  are: 

Per  M 

Douglas  fir $40 .  00 

White  fir 25.00 

Incense  cedar 30 .  00 

The  main  difference  between  the  logging  methods  used  in  this 
type  and  those  so  far  considered  is  that  steam  donkey  engines  are 
commonly  used  in  yarding.  The  large  size  of  the  timber,  the 
density  of  the  stands  and  the  comparative  evenness  of  the  topog- 
raphy make  this  method  much  more  economical  than  skidding 
with  horses.  A  yarding  crew  consists  of  a  dozen  men  and 
handles  25  to  40M  per  day.  The  donkey  engines  are  placed 
alongside  the  logging  railroads  whenever  possible  so  that  the 
logs  may  be  loaded  on  to  the  cars  by  steam  after  being  yarded. 
Where  the  topography  does  not  permit  this  a  dry  log  chute  may 
be  used  to  get  the  logs  from  the  yarding  engine  to  the  railroad. 
The  average  costs  of  a  typical  operation  were  as  follows  in  191 5: 

Per  M 
Felling  and  bucking $0 .  65 


Yarding i 

Chuting  (54  per  cent  of  cut) o 

Loading o 

Railroad  haul i 

Supervision o 


Large  mills  capable  of  turning  out  250,000  feet  in  24  hours  are 
becoming  more  common  because  they  turn  out  better  lumber  at 
less  cost.     Average  figures  for  such  a  mill  were  as  follows: 

Per  M 

Unloading  logs  in  mill  pond So. 07 

Milling 1 .  50 

Maintenance o.  50 

Yard  charges o .  73 

Planing'(part  only)  and  loading o. 90 

$3-70 

Adding  the  logging  and  milling  costs  gives  a  total  cost  of  $9  per 
M.     Hence  there  is  a  possible  margin  for  stumpage  and  profit 


I20  SUGAR   PINE   TYPE 

of  $13  for  sugar  pine,  $9  for  yellow  pine  and  Douglas  fir,  $5  for 
incense  cedar,  and  $3  for  white  fir.  Nor  can  these  figures  be 
increased  ordinarily  by  the  sale  of  tops  or  slabs  for  firewood 
because  the  local  demand  is  small. 

In  man  hours  the  costs  of  an  average  operation  would  be  as 
follows: 

Man  hours  per  M 

Felling  and  bucking 2 

To  miU 7 

Milling 7 

16 

In  addition  to  these  labor  costs  there  would  be  considerable 
charges  for  interest  and  depreciation  in  the  case  of  milling  and 
getting  the  logs  to  the  mill. 

Land  Valuation.  —  The  use  of  sugar  pine  land  for  farming  is 
generally  impracticable  on  any  large  scale  because  the  slopes 
make  irrigation  expensive.  In  addition  the  shallowness  of  the 
soil  and  frequent  outcrops  of  rock  are  obstacles  to  cheap  cultiva- 
tion. As  a  consequence  there  is  no  sale  for  land  for  this  purpose 
with  the  exception  of  an  occasional  mountain  meadow. 

For  grazing  there  is  more  demand  for  this  type.  It  will  sup- 
port from  one  to  two  head  of  cattle  or  10  sheep  during  the  sum- 
mer months  on  40  acres  and  a  fair  renta'  per  acre  is  10  cents. 
Hence  the  capital -value  may  safely  be  taken  as  $1.25  per  acre 
using  an  8  per  cent  interest  rate. 

The  main  reason  why  land  in  this  type  cannot  be  given  a  high 
value  per  acre  for  the  production  of  lumber  is  that  growth  is 
slow  during  the  early  stages.  This  is,  however,  better  than  the 
returns  from  grazing  and  of  more  importance  to  the  large  owner 
than  the  possible  use  of  a  small  fraction  of  his  land  for  tillage, 
purposes.  Therefore  it  would  seem  that  the  highest  use  to  which 
most  of  the  type  can  be  put  is  the  groAving  of  timber  supplemented 
by  grazing  on  lands  where  the  reproduction  will  not  be  injured 
by  the  browsing  of  cattle  or  sheep.  Furthermore  these  uses  are 
in  many  cases  supplemented  by  the  values  accruing  from  water- 
shed protection  whether  the  water  so  conserved  is  used  for  irriga- 
tion or  power  purposes. 


LAND   TITLES 


Land  Titles. —  This  subject  may  be  quickly  disposed  of  because 
the  title  conditions  obtain  here  which  have  been  already  dis- 
cussed in  connection  with  the  other  tree  types  occurring  in  the 
western  public  land  survey  states. 


CHAPTER  XV 

REDWOOD   TYPE 

General  Conditions. —  The  redwood,  Sequoia  sempervirens, 
must  be  distinguished  from  its  near  relative,  the  big  tree.  Sequoia 
Washingtonia,  because  they  are  very  different  in  many  respects. 
They  are  unlike  botanically,  the  wood  has  not  quite  the  same 
commercial  value,  and  their  ranges  are  not  identical.  The  red- 
wood is  confined  to  a  belt  about  lo  miles  wide  and  within  30 
miles  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  on  the  west  side  of  the  Coast  Range  in 
northern  California  and  southern  Oregon.  Its  distribution  is 
well  defined  in  the  following  quotation  from  Forest  Service 
Bulletin  No.  38: 

The  Redwood  is^popularly  thought  to  occupy  a  strip  of 
country  10  to  30  miles  wide,  from  the  Oregon  fine  to  the 
Bay  of  Monterey,  but  these  boundaries  do  not  cover  its 
actual  distribution.  Two  thousand  acres  of  Redwood, 
in  two  separate  groups,  are  growing  in  Oregon  along  the 
Chetco  River.  South  of  the  Chetco  a  continuous  Red- 
wood belt  begins.  By  way  of  the  river  valleys  and  low- 
lands it  increases  its  width  from  10  miles,  at  Del  Norte 
County,  to  18  or  20  miles,  and  keeps  on  unbroken  to 
southern  Humboldt  County.  Here,  for  about  a  township, 
it  thins  out,  but  becomes  dense  again  six  miles  north  of 
the  Mendocino  line,  and  after  entering  that  county 
widens  to  35  miles,  its  greatest  width.  The  Redwood 
belt  ends  in  Mendocino  County,  but  isolated  forests  of  the 
species  are  growing  in  sheltered  spots  as  far  south  as  Sal- 
mon Creek  Canyon,  in  the  Santa  Lucia  Mountains,  Mon- 
terey County,  12  miles  south  of  Punta  Gorda,  and  500 
miles  from  the  northern  limit  of  the  tree  along  the  Chetco 
River. 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


123 


Fig.  12.     Distribution  of  the  Redwood  and  Sequoia  Types 


124  REDWOOD  TYPE 

The  climate  is  the  controlling  factor  in  the  redwood's  distri- 
bution. It  is  only  found  where  there  is  at  least  30  inches  of  rain- 
fall during  the  fall  and  winter  and  constant  sea  fogs  during  the 
summer.  This  minimum  precipitation  is  characteristic  of  the 
southern  part  of  its  range  where  the  trees  do  not  reach  as  large 
size  as  they  do  farther  north.  In  fact  the  greater  the  rainfall  the 
better  the  trees,  always  provided  the  growing  season  is  long. 
This  latter  factor  of  temperature  prevents  the  spread  of  the 
species  north.  A  mean  annual  temperature  of  50  degrees  or 
60  degrees  is  necessary  with  not  less  than  six  months  free  from 
frost.  In  other  words,  the  climate  is  Kke  that  of  the  southeast 
at  Charleston,  S.  C,  for  example,  in  the  absolute  amount  of 
precipitation,  and  the  range  and  duration  of  temperature,  but 
there  are  two  marked  differences.  The  great  evaporation  of  the 
southeast  is  checked  by  the  summer  fogs  while  there  are  no  high 
winds  such  as  sweep  our  eastern  coast  in  the  fall  and  winter. 
Hence  the  redwood  grows  under  ahnost  ideal  conditions.  There 
is  a  long  growing  season  to  give  large  diameter  and  height  growth 
and  enough  moisture  to  not  only  further  these  but  also  permit  of 
a  fair  degree  of  density. 

These  favorable  climatic  factors  are  still  further  enhanced  by 
favorable  soil  conditions.  Situated  on  the  lower  slopes  of  the 
coast  ranges  there  is  sufficient  depth  of  soil  together  with  the 
requisite  drainage  to  prevent  sourness.  The  most  desirable  soil 
conditions  are  found  on  the  flats  along  the  streams.  Here  the 
soil  is  fertile,  deep  and  well  watered  and  the  redwood  reaches  a 
diameter  of  20  feet  and  the  magnificent  total  height  of  350  feet, 
the  tallest  of  all  American  tree  species.  With  it  are  associated 
hemlock  and  Sitka  spruce  but  the  redwood  usually  makes  up  at 
least  half  of  the  total  number  of  trees.  The  virgin  stands  per 
acre  in  this  flat  subtype  range  from  150M  board  feet  in  the 
northern  part  of  its  range  to  about  a  third  of  that  in  the  south. 

The  other  subtype  recognized  by  Fisher,  the  slope  subtype,  is 
located  on  the  relatively  drier  and  more  shallow  slopes.  With 
less  favorable  conditions  for  redwood  the  competition  from  other 
species  is  keener,  such  a  large  size  is  not  attained  and  growth  is 
less  rapid.     The  following  table  summarizing  the  principal  facts 


STUMPAGE   VALUES 


125 


in  regard  to  each  subtype  also  offers  a  basis  for  comparing  the 
two: 


Composition  by  number 

Flat 

Slope 

Per  cent 
80 

5 

Per  cent 
60 

Hemlock                        

5 

White  fir                            

Tanbark  oak                            

5 

100 

100 

Feet  Feet 

Maximum  diameter 20  10 

Maximum  height 350  225 

Growth  in  30  years: 

Diameter 16  9 

Height 80  55 

Timber  Values. —  There  are  only  two  reasons  why  the  esti- 
mating of  redwood  need  cost  more  than  a  very  moderate  sum  per 
acre.  The  mere  size  of  the  trees  is  the  least  important  of  these 
two  but  large  trees  are  somewhat  harder  to  estimate  rapidly  than 
medium  sized  ones.  Redwood  may,  however,  occur  on  slopes 
which  are  difiEicult  to  negotiate.  But  against  these  two  unfavor- 
able factors  can  be  set  the  favoring  ones  of  accessibility,  uniform- 
ity of  composition,  and  low  value  of  the  standing  trees  per  M. 
Hence  it  is  seldom  necessary  to  estimate  more  than  10  per  cent 
of  the  total  stand  and  the  cost  per  acre  should  not  exceed  five 
cents  for  tracts  of  any  size. 

As  stated  above  stumpage  values  are  low.  The  prime  reason 
for  this  is  the  freight  charge  to  the  eastern  markets  but  it  must 
be  remembered  that  redwood  in  spite  of  its  large  size  is  a  soft, 
weak  wood  mainly  used  for  rough  construction  purposes.  This 
is  the  way  in  which  its  great  durabiHty  in  contact  with  the 
ground  and  when  exposed  to  the  weather  can  be  best  taken  ad- 
vantage of.  In  other  words  it  is  an  excellent  wood  for  shingles, 
rough  boards,  boxes,  and  railroad  ties  where  the  traffic  is  not 
heavy.  The  average  sale  value  in  191 7  at  the  mill  as  stated  in 
Forest  Service  Bulletin   No.  768  was  $21   per  M.     This  was 


126  REDWOOD  TYPE 

much  above  the  pre-war  value  because  for  the  five  years  between 
1 91 6  and  1909  inclusive  the  average  was  Si 4. 3 5  per  M.  This  lat- 
ter figure  is  naturally  a  safer  one  to  use  in  determining  the  margin 
available  for  stumpage  than  the  abnormal  value  of  191 7. 

Logging  and  milling  costs  present  no  unusual  features  except 
that  the  large  size  of  the  timber  makes  steam  logging  the  most 
economical.  But  this  merely  tends  to  reduce  costs  if  handled 
on  a  large  enough  scale.  It  is,  of  course,  no  business  for  a  small 
operator.  The  holdings  must  be  large,  the  logs  skidded  by  steam, 
a  railroad  built  to  haul  the  logs,  and  heavy  sawmill  machinery 
employed.     In  1900  Fisher  found  that  costs  were  as  follows: 

PerM 

Logging $3 .  00  to  $5 .  50 

Milling 3 .  00  to    3 .  so 

Loading 0.25  to   0.50 

Freight  to  local  towns  in  California 2 .  50  to   4 .  00 

Office  costs,  etc 2 .  00 

$10.75 

Converted  to  labor  hours  per  M  these  costs  would  be  as  follows: 

Man  hours 

plus 

fixed^charges 

Logging 7 

Milling 7 

14 

With  a  sale  value  of  $11  to  $13  per  M  for  rough  lumber  and  $18 
to  $25  for  clear  boards  th^re  was  naturally  little  margin  for  stump- 
age.  Even  today  redwood  is  worth  less  than  $5  per  M  standing. 
Land  Values, —  Fisher  estimates  that  but  two  per  cent  of  the 
redwood  type  may  be  classified  as  "  flat  "  so  that  the  tillage  pos- 
sibilities are  not  great.  At  best  it  will  only  pay  to  faftn  compar- 
atively small  areas.  There  is  no  chance  for  the  development  of 
agricultural  communities.  Grazing  is  only  feasible  on  the  drier 
ridges  where  the  stands  of  redwood  and  its  associated  tree  species 
are  open  enough  to  permit  grass  and  weed  growth.  Unquestion- 
ably the  highest  use  to  which  most  of  this  type  can  be  put  is  for 
the  production  of  timber.  Except  on  the  dry  ridges  reproduc- 
tion is  vigorous  enough  and  growth  sufficiently  rapid  to  justify  the 


TITLES  127 

land  being  held  for  a  second  crop.  This  is  one  of  the  few  types 
in  the  United  States  which  can  average  1000  board  feet  per  acre 
per  annum  under  management.  This  means  that  the  soil  is 
worth  at  least  $10  per  acre  for  timber  production.  With  fire 
ehminated  —  and  this  is  not  a  difficult  task  in  the  humid  cHmate 
of  the  type  —  there  is  very  Kttle  risk  since  insect  and  fungus 
enemies  are  not  abundant. 

Titles. —  With  only  a  short  chain  of  title  possible  resting  upon 
the  original  grant  from  the  Federal  Government  and  each  square 
mile  surveyed  there  can  be  little  difficulty  in  identifying,  describ- 
ing or  passing  title  to  redwood  land.  The  only  precaution  that 
needs  to  be  observed  is  to  make  sure  that  no  fraud  was  practised 
in  obtaining  title  from  the  United  States.  The  methods  used  in 
the  early  days  to  secure  timber  lands  under  the  homestead  and 
timber  and  stone  laws  were  not  always  exactly  regular. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
BIG  TREES  —  SEQUOIAS 

What  has  been  said  about  the  redwood  applies  with  certain 
exceptions  to  the  big  trees.  The  wood  has  the  same  general  uses, 
logging  methods  are  identical,  and  costs,  sale  values,  and  stump- 
age  prices  are  similar.  The  major  differences  are  in  distribution, 
and  vigor  of  growth  and  reproduction.  The  groves  of  big  trees 
are  the  remnants  of  much  larger  forests  which  have  been  restricted 
in  area  by  climatic  changes  and  more  vigorous  competitors. 
Whether  they  will  be  able  to  increase  in  area  with  real  protection 
from  fire,  insects  and  fungi  is  a  question.  At  present  the  big 
tree  is  confined  to  about  15  locaHties  on  the  lower  western  slopes 
of  the  Sierra  Mountains  in  California  aggregating  not  more  than 
10,000  acres.  In  altitude  the  species  is  found  from  5000  to  8000 
feet  above  sea  level  and  reaches  its  best  development  on  cool, 
moist,  sandy  or  rocky  soils  in  full  enjoyment  of  the  sunhght. 
UnHke  its  cousin,  the  redwood,  the  stands  are  rarely  more  than 
50  per  cent  big  tree  by  number.  Sugar  pine,  white  fir  and  Doug- 
las fir  are  its  commonest  associates. 

Little  difference  exists  in  the  quality  of  the  wood  from  the 
two  kinds  of  sequoia.  Both  have  the  same  uses.  Even  their 
size  does  not  vary  enough  to  affect  their  market  value.  The  red- 
wood reaches  a  greater  height  while  the  maximum  diameter  of  the 
big  tree  is  30  feet  as  against  20  feet  for  the  redwood. 

As  an  investment  for  timber  production  the  big  tree  does  not 
offer  the  advantages  that  redwood  stands  do.  The  latter 
occupies  a  well  defined  and  extensive  area  in  which  the  climatic 
conditions  are  favorable  for  vigorous  reproduction  and  rapid 
growth.  The  big  tree,  on  the  other  hand,  seems  to  be  merely 
holding  its  own  in  certain  restricted  localities.  It  is  not  even 
certain  that  its  competitors  would  not  give  higher  returns  on  the 
same  sites. 

128 


CHAPTER  XVII 
DOUGLAS  FIR 

General  Conditions.—  Altho  the  Douglas  or  red  fir  is  one  of  our 
most  widely  distributed  timber  trees  and  is  found  throughout 
the  Rocky  Mountain  and  Cascade  ranges  from  Northwestern 
Texas  to  British  Columbia  it  is  not  the  dominant  species  over 
wide  areas  except  in  the  extreme  northwestern  part  of  the 
United  States.  There  it  occurs  in  nearly  pure  stands  with  high 
yields.  In  CaKfornia  the  type  occupies  the  middle  slopes  of  the 
west  side  of  the  Cascades  between  the  sequoia  and  sugar  pine 
types.  All  of  western  Oregon  is  covered  with  it  from  the  summit 
of  the  Cascades  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  except  the  valley  of  the 
Willamette  River,  a  sheltered  basin  lacking  in  precipitation. 
Northward  in  Washington  there  are  no  such  dry  valleys  and  the 
type  is  the  dominant  vegetation  west  of  the  Cascades. 

Altitudinally  the  type  may  occur  anywhere  between  o  and 
6000  feet  above  sea  level  but  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of 
climate  is  only  abundant  at  sea  level  in  Washington.  South- 
ward in  Oregon  and  California  it  is  commonly  forced  to  keep  to 
the  mountain  slopes  by  tree  species  Kke  the  sequoia  which  are 
better  adapted  to  the  warmer,  drier  climate  and  even  on  these 
slopes  it  prefers  the  cooler  north  slopes. 

With  a  north  and  south  extent  of  500  miles  and  an  east  and 
west  width  of  150  miles  there  is  naturally  considerable  variation 
within  the  type  in  cUmate.  The  north  and  south  extent  is  less 
important,  however,  than  the  distance  from  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
The  moisture  laden  winds  come  from  there  and  ascend  the 
steep  slopes  of  the  Cascade  Range.  At  the  point  where  they  are 
cooled  down  to  the  temperature  at  which  they  give  off  their 
moisture  freely  the  Douglas  fir  type  is  most  vigorous.  While 
it  can  exist  \vith  an  average  annual  precipitation  of  50  inches  it 
does  better  where  the  total  annual  rainfall  is  50  to  100  per  cent 

129 


130  DOUGLAS   FIR 

greater.  In  fact  within  its  boundaries  occurs  the  heaviest 
measured  rainfall  in  the  United  States,  100  inches  in  12  months. 

The  growing  season  is  relatively  long  as  compared  with  locali- 
ties of  the  same  latitude  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  United  States. 
This  is  because  the  Pacific  Coast  climate  is  much  modified  by  the 
warm  moist  winds  from  the  ocean.  Hence  there  are  no  months 
at  Seattle  when  the  mean  temperature  is  below  freezing.  Taking 
the  type  as  a  whole  in  the  United  States  from  northern  CaHfornia 
to  the  Canadian  line  the  growing  season  is  approximately  six 
months  long.  Temperatures  too  cold  for  tree  growth  are  rare 
from  April  thru  September. 

As  explained  above  this  type  is  most  abundant  on  the  middle 
slopes  of  the  western  side  of  the  Cascade  Range.  This  includes 
the  headwaters  of  the  Illinois  and  Rogue  rivers,  the  entire  course 
of  the  Umpdua,  and  the  upper  reaches  of  the  Willamette  and  its 
tributaries  in  Oregon.  Between  the  States  of  Oregon  and 
Washington  the  Columbia  River  cuts  thru  the  Cascade  Range  at 
right  angles  but  has  very  little  effect  on  the  distribution  of  the 
type.  Its  northern  tributary,  the  Cowlitz  River,  however,  is 
entirely  within  the  type  and  the  same  applies  to  the  other  princi- 
pal rivers  of  western  Washington,  the  Chehalis,  the  Queniult, 
the  Skagit,  and  the  Nooksak.  All  of  these  are  characterized  by 
short,  steep  courses,  with  an  abundance  of  water. 

As  might  be  inferred  from  the  steep  to  moderate  slopes  which 
the  type  occupies  the  soil  is  fairly  deep  but  yet  not  free  from 
outcrops  and  loose  rocks.  In  origin  it  is  partly  glacial  and  in 
Oregon  and  California  residual  or  volcanic. 

While  Douglas  fir  is  the  dominant  species  in  the  type  it  has 
many  associates  on  the  sites  which  it  does  not  possess  the  special 
ability  to  preempt.  For  example,  in  the  river  bottoms  in  the 
interior  and  along  the  seashore  red  cedar,  Sitka  spruce  and 
Lawson  cypress  share  the  ground  with  it.  This  is  called  the  fir 
cedar  subtype.  On  the  drier  lower  slopes  above  the  shore  line 
and  river  bottom  the  fir  is  preeminent.  Here  it  finds  the  deep, 
loose  soil,  the  long  growing  season  and  abundant  rainfaJl  which 
it  requires  to  reach  its  maximum  development.  Higher  up,  that 
is,  extending  from  3000  to  4000  feet  above  sea  level  to  6000  or 


TIMBER    VALUATION 


131 


7000,  the  Douglas  fir  is  mixed  with  western  hemlock  and  several 
species  of  balsam.  All  the  tree  subtypes  referred  to  above  occur 
in  the  western  slope  of  the  Cascade  Range.  Its  eastern  side  being 
sheltered  from  the  moist  Pacific  winds  has  much  less  precipitation. 
As  a  consequence  the  stands  are  more  open  and  the  Douglas  fir 
shares  preeminence  with  western  larch,  a  species  which  makes 
only  moderate  demands  upon  soil  moisture.  A  comparative 
stand  table  for  these  different  subtypes  under  virgin  conditions 
is  given  below: 

M 

Fir-cedar 60 

Pure  fir 100 

Fir-hemlock 75 

Fir-larch 30 

Accurate  growth  data  for  all  the  species  found  in  the  type  are 
not  available,  but  good  figures  do  exist  for  Douglas  fir  and  it 
seemed  wise  to  make  estimates  for  the  other  species  in  order  to 
give  at  least  a  relative  notion  of  their  growth. 


50  yrs.     100  yrs. 


Height 


50  yrs.     100  yrs. 


Douglas  fir 

Red  cedar 

Lawson  cypress. . 

Sitka  spruce 

Western  hemlock 

Grand  fir 

Amabilis  fir 

Western  larch 


24"  102 '  154'        28M      79M 

slower    growing     than    Douglas     fir 


Timber  Valuation.  —  The  following  quotation  from  Comp- 
ton's  "  Organization  of  the  Timber  Industry  "  sets  forth  the  early 
conditions  in  regard  to  stumpage  prices  of  Douglas  fir. 

"  During  the  eighties  the  prevailing  price  of  stumpage  in 
Washington  was  not  over  15  cents  per  M  feet.  Between  1898 
and  1908  prices  trebled.  A  stand  of  eight  million  feet  (estimated) 
was  bought  in  189 1  for  $800  or  for  10  cents  per  M  feet.  In  1909 
the  same  tract  was  sold  for  $18,500  or  for  S2.31  per  M  feet.  As 
late  as  1903  a  stand  of  472  million  feet  (estimated)  was  purchased 


132 


DOUGLAS   FIR 


at  12.9  cents  per  M.  In  1907,  59  cents  per  M  was  offered  for  the 
entire  tract.  A  great  deal  of  the  timberland  of  the  Pacific  North- 
west has  been  alienated  from  the  public  domain  under  the  general 
land  laws.  Some  of  the  timber  in  select  areas  has  thus  been  sold 
by  the  United  States  at  less  than  four  cents  per  M  feet.  Similar 
conditions  have  largely  prevailed  in  Oregon  which  now  has  a 
greater  supply  of  merchantable  timber  than  has  any  other  state. 
Because  of  the  extremely  low  original  prices,  a  very  large  relative 
increase  in  stumpage  prices  in  the  Pacific  Northwest  does  not 
necessarily  imply  a  great  absolute  rise." 

No  figures  for  an  extended  period  exist  for  the  subordinate 
species  in  the  type  such  as  hemlock,  balsam,  cedar,  etc.,  for  the 
reason  that  they  have  only  recently  become  merchantable  at  all. 
They  are  now,  however,  being  cut  more  and  more  and  command 
an  average  stumpage  value  of  not  more  than  $1.50  per  M  in  this 
type. 

As  far  as  use  value  is  concerned  Douglas  fir  easily  leads  all  its 
associated  species.  In  fact  it  ranks  second  in  the  lumber  cut  of 
the  United  States  and  the  amount  produced  annually  is  only 
exceeded  by  the  combination  of  three  southeastern  species  usu- 
ally grouped  together  under  the  name  of  yellow  pine.  This  fact 
alone  is  enough  to  show  that  it  is  strong,  easily  worked  wood  in 
demand  for  general  construction  purposes,  for  a  wood  must 
answer  these  requirements  to  stand  high  in  the  annual  lumber  cut. 
In  comparison  with  white  pine  it  is  harder  but  stronger,  while 
the  better  grades  of  yellow  pine  exceed  it  sUghtly  in  strength  and 
durability.  It  is  consequently  eagerly  sought  for  such  a  wide 
variety  of  uses  as  railroad  bridges,  ties,  boat  building,  flooring 
and  interior  finish.  In  19 10  the  main  uses  to  which  the  lumber 
was  put  were  as  follows: 

Per  cent 

Mill  work 87 

Tanks  and  silos 4 

Car  construction 4 

Boats 2 

Pumps  and  wood  pipe i 

Other  uses 2 

.100 


TIMBER  VALUATION  133 

On  Nov.  24,  1920,  the  following  prices  prevailed  f.o.b.  the  mills 
for  the  principal  grades  of  Douglas  fir: 

Flooring  (vertical) $40  per  M 

Finish 35       " 

Drop  siding 35       " 

Boards  and  shiplap  No.  i 19       " 

Dimension  No.  iS&E 16       " 

The  average  mill  run  price  in  191 2  was  $11.58. 

Lawson  cypress  is  important  locally  but  does  not  reach  the 
general  eastern  market  at  least  under  its  own  name.  In  the  first 
place  there  is  not  enough  of  it  to  make  it  an  important  factor  in 
the  lumber  market  and  secondly  it  is  used  for  purposes  which  do 
not  demand  high  priced  lumber.  Hence,  while  it  is  a  common 
wood  in  Oregon  for  fence  posts,  railway  ties  and  poles,  it  is  only 
occasionally  cut  into  lurnber  and  then  only  for  local  consumption. 
Its  sale  value  per  M  is  accordingly  low.  At  the  mills  it  does  not 
exceed  $10  per  M  for  the  mill  run. 

Red  cedar  is  of  more  than  local  importance  but  not  as  lumber. 
It  is  in  the  form  of  shingles  that  it  has  invaded  the  eastern  market. 
This  western  species  is  not  to  be  confused  with  the  eastern  red 
cedar  which  belongs  to  another  genus.  The  latter  finds  its 
highest  use  as  pencil  wood  and  usually  grows  too  small  for  high 
grade  shingles.  The  western  red  cedar  on  the  other  hand  is 
a  magnificent  tree  four  to  six  feet  in  diameter  and  yields  the 
widest  shingles  on  the  general  market.  But  even  for  this  pur- 
pose the  mill  run  value  will  not  exceed  $15  per  M. 

Sitka  spruce  is  another  species  which  has  not  been  sold  in  the 
general  markets,  at  least  before  the  Great  War.  Recently,  how- 
ever, it  has  been  in  great  demand  as  airplane  stock  where  its 
lightness  and  strength  meet  a  special  need  and  help  to  relieve  the 
strain  on  the  producers  of  eastern  spruce.  The  two  woods  are 
essentially  the  same  in  structure  and  properties  so  that  it  is  safe 
to  predict  a  widening  market  for  Sitka  spruce  when  it  can  be  sup- 
pHed  to  the  manufacturers  of  musical  instruments,  pulp  manu- 
facturers, etc.  At  present,  however,  the  mill  run  cannot  be  sold 
for  more  than  $15  per  M. 

Western  hemlock  is  in  an  even  worse  plight.     It  has  no  special 


134  DOUGLAS   FIR 

high  value  uses  but  merely  makes  good  rough  construction  lum- 
ber. For  a  long  time,  therefore,  it  was  not  cut  at  all  and  even 
now  is  only  shipped  east  when  cut  in  special  sizes  of  extra  length 
or  width.  Hence,  the  mill  run  never  averages  better  than  $io 
per  M. 

Balsam  is  another  low  grade  species  the  bulk  of  which  must  be 
used  locally  for  boxes,  cheap  finish  and  other  purposes  for  which 
a  soft,  weak  wood  which  is  not  durable  may  be  used.  Its  mill 
run  also  averages  about  $io  per  M  at  the  point  of  manufacture, 
and  this  is  true  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  large  sizes  may  be  obtained. 

Larch  commands  a  better  figure  because  it  is  fairly  hard  and 
much  more  durable.  It  can,  therefore,  be  used  for  flooring,  rail- 
way ties,  and  general  construction  work.  Its  only  fault  is  that  it 
is  Hable  to  spHt  if  cut  into  inch  boards  of  over  six  inches  in  width. 
Consequently  all  the  clear  lumber  goes  into  flooring  which  is 
always  made  in  narrow  widths.  This  brings  up  the  average  mill 
run  value  to  about  $12  f.o.b.  the  mill. 

Logging  costs  in  the  Douglas  fir  present  certain  marked  dif- 
ferences from  those  in  other  types  because  the  conditions  to  be 
met  are  unique.  Felling  and  bucking  are  difficult  on  account  of 
the  large  size  of  the  timber.  It  is  obvious  that  different  methods 
must  be  used  with  a  tree  containing  8  to  16  foot  logs  and  five 
feet  in  diameter  at  the  top  end  of  the  first  log  than  are  employed 
for  ordinary  sized  trees.  In  the  first  place  a  spring  board  is  com- 
monly used  to  put  the  sawyers  up  above  the  root  swelling.  Then 
the  fallers  need  so  much  time  to  saw  thru  the  tree  that  they  do 
none  of  the  notching,  but  a  head  chopper  takes  over  all  this 
work.  Even  the  bucking  is  often  done  by  special  buckers  by 
contract  or  better  yet  the  logs  are  hauled  in  to  a  steam  saw  in 
as  long  lengths  as  possible  and  hand  work  thus  eliminated  in 
this  operation.  But  the  situation  has  its  relieving  features. 
The  cost  of  feUing  and  bucking  are  low  per  M  because  of  the 
large  size  of  the  trees.  Where  a  single  tree  contains  5  to  10  M 
feet  it  can  readily  be  seen  that  the  cost  of  felling  and  bucking  will 
be  much  less  per  M  than  for  small  trees. 

Ordinary  skidding  methods  are  Ukewise  wholly  inadequate. 
Donkey  engines  are  the  only  successful  method  by  which  suffi- 


TIMBER  VALUATION  135 

dent  power  may  be  developed  to  handle  the  immense  logs.  Oxen 
and  horses  have  proved  futile.  But  if  properly  appHed,  steam 
skidders  give  low  costs  per  M  when  there  is  sufficient  timber  to 
justify  the  heavy  initial  investment. 

The  large  size  of  the  timber  has  also  dictated  the  methods 
employed  to  transport  the  logs  from  the  skidding  yards  to  the 
mills.  There  are  plenty  of  drivable  streams  in  the  region  for 
timber  of  ordinary  size  but  they  are  too  steep,  too  rocky,  and  too 
crooked  to  carry  large  logs.  Hence  railroads  had  to  be  built 
into  the  timber  even  tho  it  is  all  softwood  and  not  hardwood. 
But  railroads  are  the  most  economical  method  of  log  transport 
where  there  is  enough  timber  to  cover  the  heavy  initial  invest- 
ment. In  fact  logs  in  this  type  cost  as  Httle  per  M  laid  down  in 
the  mill  pond  as  those  from  any  type  simply  because  there  are 
heavy  stands  per  acre  and  steam  can  economically  replace  hand 
labor.  This  is  more  especially  the  case  where  rafting  on  salt 
water  can  take  the  place  of  rail  transport.  This,  of  course,  only 
apphes  to  timber  on  tidewater  but  a  large  percentage  of  what 
has  been  so  far  cut  has  been  thus  advantageously  situated. 

Milling  charges  do  not  differ  much  from  those  that  prevail  in 
other  regions  altho  the  saw,  carriages  and  other  equipment  have 
to  be  unusually  large.  The  high  cost  of  labor  seems  to  offset 
any  advantage  there  is  in  the  large  logs. 

Average  costs  per  M  from  the  stump  to  the  car  in  191 5  may  be 
summarized  as  follows: 

Felling  and  bucking $0 .  60  or  one  and  one-half  man  hours. 

Yarding  and  loading 2 .  00  or  three  man  hours  plus  fixed  charges. 

Transport  to  mill: 

-r,        .,       , '  ""^  [  or  five  man  hours  plus  fixed  charges. 

By  railroad 2.00I  ° 

Milling 4 .  00  or  four  man  hours  plus  fixed  charges. 

Total  cost $7.85  or  S8. 60 

Using  an  average  logging  cost  of  S7.25  per  M  there  are  the 
following  margins  possible  for  stumpage  and  profit  \viih.  the 
species  which  occur  in  this  type : 


136  DOUGLAS   FIR 

PerM 

Douglas  fir S5 

Cjpress 3 

Red  cedar 5 

Sitka  spruce 5 .  00 

Hemlock 3 

Balsam 3 

Larch 5 

Land  Values. —  Of  the  three  possible  uses  of  Douglas  fir  land 
exclusive  of  the  timber  and  minerals,  tillage,  grazing  and  timber 
production,  the  first  will  undoubtedly  give  the  highest  returns 
where  the  conditions  are  favorable.  But  tillage  requires  gentle 
slopes,  reasonable  freedom  from  rock  outcrops  and  loose  stones, 
and  a  ready  market,  and  this  combination  of  characters  is  seldom 
met  with  in  the  type.  The  slopes  are  usually  too  steep,  especially 
if  irrigation  is  to  be  employed,  the  soil  is  frequently  too  shallow, 
and  the  local  market  will  only  absorb  a  Umited  amount  of  produce 
while  the  general  market  is  across  the  continent  and  only  acces- 
sible for  high  grade  products.  For  example,  northwestern  apples 
have  earned  an  enviable  reputation  but  simply  because  it  is  only 
the  very  best  grades  that  will  stand  the  freight  charges  that  must 
be  paid  to  reach  the  general  market.  Hence,  very  Uttle  of  this 
type  has  yet  been  cleared.  The  famous  agricultur3,l  sections  of 
the  northwest  the  Palouse,  the  Willamette,  etc.,  are  treeless  sec- 
tions which  have  been  rendered  fertile  by  irrigation.  In  other 
words  it  has  been  more  profitable  to  irrigate  arid  regions  than  to 
clear  off  the  timber  in  the  sections  where  there  is  abundant  mois- 
ture. Another  factor  which  needs  at  least  passing  mention  is 
that  even  in  the  humid  parts  of  the  northwest  there  is  a  defi- 
ciency of  moisture  during  the  summer;  for  example,  at  Olym- 
pia,  Washington,  only  three  inches  of  rainfall  during  June,  July 
and  August  or  merely  5  per  cent  of  the  total  annual  precipita- 
tion of  55  inches.  This  illustrates  why  irrigation  is  desirable  for 
many  crops  even  in  places  where  there  is  a  superabundance  of 
moisture  in  the  winter.  Hence,  the  cost  of  irrigation  must  usu- 
ally be  added  to  that  of  clearing  in  the  Douglas  fir  type.  Three 
factors,  then,  make  tillage  a  doubtful  proposition,  the  heavy  cost 
of  clearing,  the  steep  slopes,  and  the  cost  of  irrigation.     Grazing 


TITLES  137 

is  also  little  practiced  within  this  type  for  the  very  good  reason 
that  the  trees  stand  so  close  together  that  very  little  grass  can 
grow  underneath  them.  The  only  exceptions  to  this  general  rule 
are  occasional  locahties  where  the  fir-larch  subtj^e  is  open  enough 
to  permit  some  grass  growth  but  these  are  practically  negligible. 

Hence  it  follows  that  taking  the  type  as  a  whole  the  production 
of  timber  is  the  highest  use  of  the  soil.  There  is  only  one  unfavor- 
able factor.  That  is  the  distance  to  market.  But  improvements 
in  transportation  and  growing  scarcity  of  timber  in  other  regions 
are  bound  to  lead  to  an  increase  in  stumpage  prices.  In  fact  it 
seems  safe  to  figure  that  these  prices  will  be  at  least  $10  per  M 
within  the  next  rotation  of  100  years.  With  this  assumption 
and  using  an  interest  rate  of  3  per  cent  the  value  of  the  land 
within  the  type  is  $22  per  acre. 

Titles. —  Land  titles  present  no  special  problems.  In  surveyed 
sections  they  are  easy  to  trace  since  the  land  has  been  obtained 
from  the  Federal  Government  within  a  short  period  either  thru 
the  homestead  or  timber  and  stone  claim  laws  or  purchased  out- 
right from  the  State  or  land  grant  railways. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
ALASKA 

Climate  and  Topography.  —  As  a  preliminary  to  a  description 
of  the  timber  distribution  in  Alaska  an  understanding  of  the 
cHmatic  factors  is  desirable.  In  the  first  place  it  is  necessary  to 
correct  the  general  impression  that  low  temperatures  preclude 
all  tree  growth.  This  probably  arises  from  a  failure  to  understand 
that  Alaska  is  1400  miles  long.  In  other  words,  it  would  reach 
from  Cape  Cod  to  Key  West  if  set  down  on  the  Atlantic  Coast. 
Hence  the  southern  third  is  outside  the  Arctic  Circle.  Sitka,  the 
capital,  for  example,  has  an  average  annual  temperature  equal  to 
that  of  Philadelphia.  This  is  true  even  tho  Sitka  is  in  the  same 
latitude  as  northern  Labrador  because  of  the  warm  winds  which 
blow  off  the  Pacific  Ocean.  These  are  also  responsible  for  the 
heavy  precipitation  of  southern  Alaska  where  80  inches  per  annum 
is  not  uncommon.  The  northern  or  continental  part  of  Alaska 
has  an  entirely  different  cHmate,  however.  This  part  may  be 
said  to  consist  of  a  basin,  the  Yukon  and  Kuskokwim  river  val- 
leys with  the  Alaska  Range  on  the  south  and  the  Endicott  Range 
on  the  north.  The  former  is  particularly  rugged,  running  up  to 
15,000  feet  above  sea  level  in  many  places  and  attaining  the  mag- 
nificent altitude  of  over  20,000  feet  in  Mt.  McKinley  the  highest 
peak  in  North  America.  This  means  that  many  of  the  mountains 
are  too  high  to  permit  tree  growth  on  them. 

The  Endicott  Range  while  not  so  lofty  is,  however,  high 
enough  to  also  have  considerable  areas  above  timber  line.  In  all, 
approximately  one  third  of  the  territory  is  so  far  above  sea  level 
that  tree  growth  is  out  of  the  question.  Another  third  of  the 
land  area  is  also  treeless  but  for  another  reason.  This  is  the  so 
called  "  tundra  "  upon  which  tree  growth  cannot  exist  because  of 
the  short  growing  season.  To  this  category  belong  the  slopes 
draining  into  the  Arctic  Ocean  and  Behring  Sea.  The  glaciers 
and  snowfields  are  also  without  tree  growth. 

138 


THE  COAST  FORESTS  139 

There  remains  less  than  one  third  of  the  land  area,  27  per  cent 
to  be  exact.  Of  this  6  per  cent  is  capable  of  producing  large 
sized  saw  timber.  It  is  confined  to  southwestern  Alaska  whose 
climate  has  already  been  described.  The  remainder  of  the  timber 
producing  area,  21  per  cent  of  the  whole  territory,  has,  however, 
an  entirely  different  cUmate.  The  conditions  at  Fairbanks  in  the 
Yukon  Valley  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  this  region.  The  mean 
annual  precipitation  is  15  inches.  The  winters  are  long  and  cold 
while  the  summers  tho  short  are  warm.  July,  for  example,  has 
an  average  of  57°  F.  Furthermore,  there  is  almost  continual  day- 
light during  the  vegetative  season.  Consequently  the  upper 
surface  of  the  soil  thaws  out  sufficiently  to  permit  vegetative 
growth  while  the  frozen  layers  beneath  supply  ample  moisture  by 
capillary  attraction.  There  results,  therefore,  rapid  growth  in 
spite  of  the  short  season  and  scant  rainfall.  White  spruce  (Picea 
canadensis)  and  three  cottonwoods  (Fopulus  balsamifera,  tricho- 
carpa  and  tremuloides)  and  white  birch  (Betula  alaskana)  are  the 
dominant  species  with  black  spruce  (Picea  nigra)  and  tamarack 
(Larix  alaskensis)  much  less  common.  These  trees  reach  their 
best  development  in  the  deep  soiled  river  bottoms  and  are  short 
and  stunted  on  the  hillsides.  Diameters  of  more  than  18  inches 
breast-high  and  total  heights  of  over  50  feet  are  rare.  The  stands 
are  relatively  op>en  so  that  the  yields  per  acre  are  not  large.  In 
fact  the  wonder  is  that  trees  do  so  well  rather  than  that  they  are 
not  larger  and  denser.  Scant  rainfall  and  a  long  winter  are  only 
partially  offset  by  the  long  summer  days  and  abundant  supply 
of  ground  moisture. 

The  Coast  Forests. —  By  contrast  with  the  interior  forests  the 
coast  timber  seems  magnificent.  It  is  in  fact  a  northern  exten- 
sion of  the  luxuriant  Douglas  fir  type  of  Washington  and  Oregon. 
The  composition  is,  however,  considerably  altered  by  the  lower 
temperatures.  Douglas  fir  is  no  longer  found  but  the  dominant 
species  are  western  hemlock  (Tsuga  heterophylla)  and  Sitka 
spruce  (Picea  sitchensis).  Western  red  cedar  (Thuya  plicata) 
and  yellow  cedar  (Chamaecyparis  Nootkatensis)  occur  sparingly 
in  southwestern  Alaska.  Species  of  little  commercial  importance 
which  are  more  or  less  abundant  in  this  type  are : 


I40  ALASKA 

Lodgepole  pine  (Pinus  contorta). 
Black  Hemlock  (Tsuga  mertensiana). 
Alpine  fir  (Abies  lasiocarpa). 
White  spruce  (Picea  canadensis). 
Black  spruce  (Picea  mariana). 
Balsam  poplar  (Populus  balsamifera). 
Black  Cottonwood  (Populus  trichocarpa). 
Birches  (Betula). 
Willows  (Salix). 

From  the  description  given  above  it  is  evident  that  hemlock 
and  spruce  are  the  species  which  determine  the  stand  per  acre. 
Kellogg  estimates  that  together  they  constitute  95  per  cent  of 
the  total  average  volume  per  acre  with  the  hemlock  much  more 
abundant  and  making  up  75  per  cent  of  this  total.  For  an 
average  stand  per  acre  a  midway  location  must  be  chosen. 
Around  Cook  Inlet  the  stands  are  distinctly  less  in  volume  than 
at  the  southern  end  of  the  territory  where  it  touches  British 
.Columbia.  This  is  because  the  trees  do  not  attain  such  good 
diameter  and  height  growth  in  the  north.  Diameters  of  over 
four  feet  and  heights  of  more  than  100  feet  are  not  common 
north  of  Juneau.  South  of  there,  however,  the  stands  often 
average  better  than  25,000  feet  per  acre.  From  these  heavy 
stands  there  is  a  gradual  decrease  northward  in  the  diameters  and 
heights  until  around  Cook  Inlet  the  timber  averages  two  feet  in 
diameter  and  60  feet  in  height  with  stands  averaging  less  than 
10,000  feet  per  acre.  For  the  type  as  a  whole  15,000  feet  is  a 
conservative  figure. 

Except  for  a  small  amount  of  insect  and  fungus  damage  the 
type  is  remarkably  free  from  disease.  This  is  undoubtedly  due 
to  the  absence  of  fire,  a  result  of  the  heavy  precipitation.  The 
ground  is  covered  with  a  thick  mat  of  undergrowth  and  moss 
which  is  kept  continually  wet  by  the  ocean  fogs.  Hence,  the 
trees  grow  unchecked  until  they  are  overmature  unless  the  soil 
is  so  thin  that  the  wind  overthrows  them.  Such  damage  is, 
however,  sHght  except  near  the  upper  limit  of  tree  growth  where 
the  mountain  slopes  are  steep  and  the  soil  is  shallow. 

Growth  cannot  be  satisfactorily  set  forth  on  account  of  lack 
of  data.     There  are  only  a  few  figures  available  for  the  best  sites. 


INTERIOR  FORESTS  141 

At  the  southwestern  end  of  Alaska  the  following  diameters  were 
attained  in  100  years'  growth: 

Inches 

Sitka  spruce 18 

Red  cedar 18 

Farther  north  the  growth  would,  of  course,  be  slower  because 
of  the  shorter  growing  season  so  that  the  average  for  the  t)^e 
would  be  comparable  to  growth  conditions  in  the  spruce  type  of 
the  northeastern  United  States  where  the  yield  per  acre  in  100 
years  is  15M  board  feet. 

Interior  Forests. —  The-  composition  of  the  forests  in  the  Yukon 
and  Kuskokwim  River  valley  basins  has  already  been  referred 
to  above.  All  the  species  are  specially  adapted  to  cold,  dry 
climates.  White  spruce,  Picea  canadensis,  is  the  most  abundant 
and  the  most  important  commercially.  It  is  the  only  species 
that  is  suitable  for  even  small  saw  timber  and  also  shares  with 
the  other  species  the  burden  of  supplying  the  firewood  needs. 
Birch  and  cottonwood  are,  however,  considered  better  for  this 
latter  purpose. 

With  the  variation  in  soil  conditions  there  is  a  corresponding 
variation  in  the  composition  of  the  stands.  In  the  deep  soiled 
bottomlands  along  the  streams  pure  stands  of  white  spruce  some- 
times occur  but  a  mixture  of  this  species  with  cottonwood  and 
birch  is  more  common.  On  the  slopes  immediately  above  the 
stream  bottoms  the  same  mixture  prevails  but  the  indi\ddual 
trees  are  distinctly  smaller  and  less  vigorous.  On  the  ridges  tree 
growth  is  scattered  and  stunted  and  generally  confined  to  the 
depressions.  On  such  poorly  drained  sites  black  spruce  is  the 
common  species. 

Growth  is  slow  even  in  the  bottoms.  The  following  data  are 
taken  from  Kellogg 's  "  The  Forests  of  Alaska  ":  * 


Annual  growth 

Diameter,  inches 

Height,  inches 

White  spruce 

... 

10 

White  birch 

Forest  Service  Bull.  81,  "  The  Forests  of  Alaska,"  R.  S,  Kellogg,  1910. 


142  ALASKA 

Yield  varies  with  the  kind  of  timber  which  in  turn  depends  upon 
the  soil  conditions  as  has  already  been  shown,  consequently  the 
hea\'iest  stands  are  those  of  pure  or  mixed  white  spruce  in  the 
bottoms.  Ten  thousand  board  feet  per  acre  is  not  uncommon 
but  the  average  is  more  nearly  half  that.  The  slope  and  ridge 
stands  yield  much  less  per  acre.  Twenty  cords  per  acre  is  high 
for  the  former  wliile  much  of  the  latter  growth  is  too  small  to  be 
merchantable. 

Fire  is  the  prircipal  cause  of  damage.  It  is  especially  destruc- 
tive after  lumbering  and  many  thousands  of  acres  have  been 
seriously  if  not  permanently  damaged  in  this  way.  In  a  region 
where  tree  growth  has  so  much  to  struggle  against  fire  may  be  the 
deciding  factor  in  preventing  the  return  and  spread  of  a  forest 
cover.     No  serious  insect  or  fungus  diseases  have  been  reported. 

Timber  Valuation.  —  Since  climatic  and  market  conditions  are 
so  radically  different  for  the  different  parts  of  Alaska  it  will  be 
necessary  to  consider  timber  estimating,  logging  costs,  sale  and 
stumpage  values  separately  for  the  coast  and  interior  forests. 

An  estimating  crew  in  the  coast  forests  outfits  in  one  of  the  sea- 
board towns  like  Seattle,  Sitka  or  Juneau  and  goes  by  boat  to  the 
tract  to  be  looked  over.  An  outfit  of  several  units  or  one  mth  a 
large  amount  of  work  ahead  should  by  all  means  have  its  own 
vessel.  Then  the  men  can  five  aboard  and  be  more  comfortable 
than  they  would  ashore.  A  power  craft  varying  in  size  with  the 
number  in  the  crew  makes  an  ideal  boat  for  this  purpose. 

Arrived  at  their  destination  a  base  line  should  be  laid  out  along 
the  beach.  Then  the  strips  may  be  run  into  the  timber.  Only 
a  small  percentage,  relatively,  need  be  estimated  because  the 
composition  is  usually  uniform.  But  the  actual  running  is  dif- 
ferent because  of  the  rough  topography,  heavy  undergrowth  and 
uneven  surface.  The  slopes  from  sea  level  are  always  abrupt  and 
covered  with  rocks  and  boulders  which  have  rolled  down  from 
above.  While  the  undergrowth  is  dense  it  seldom  covers  up 
completely  the  holes  between  the  boulders  but  merely  serves  to 
conceal  them.  Furthermore,  it  is  generally  so  wet  from  fog  or 
rain  that  the  estimating  crew  is  thoroly  drenched  before  going 
100  yards  from  the  beach.     These  things  do  not  make  for  rapid 


TIMBER  VALUATION  143 

progress  when  the  trees  are  close  together  even  tho  not  large. 
In  fact  20  strip  acres  a  day  is  a  good  average.  Hence,  the 
cost  per  acre  can  seldom  be  brought  down  less  than  5  cents  even 
on  tracts  of  more  than  1000  acres.  For  smaller  tracts  it  would 
of  course  be  more. 

The  typical  logging  job  is  handled  much  as  follows:  A  crew 
of  two  to  five  men  agree  to  put  the  logs  into  the  water  for  $3  to 
$5  per  M.  After  felling  the  tops  are  lopped  and  the  tree  put  full 
length  into  the  water.  In  the  early  days  there  was  plenty  of 
timber  that  could  be  either  felled  directly  into  tidewater  or 
warped  to  the  high  water  mark  by  hand.  But  most  of  these 
chances  are  gone  now  and  it  is  more  common  to  use  the  slack  rope 
system  of  power  skidding  with  a  donkey  engine  mounted  on  a 
scow.     In  this  way  a  distance  of  900  feet  can  be  covered. 

Once  landed  in  the  water  it  is  generally  an  easy  matter  to 
gather  the  logs  into  a  raft  and  tow  them  to  the  sawmill  which  is 
also  located  on  tidewater.  To  get  fair  weather  for  these  opera- 
tions logging  is  usually  confined  to  the  summer  months.  At  the 
mill  the  full  length  logs  are  bucked  and  then  passed  by  the  saw, 
edger,  trimmer,  etc.  Seldom  can  lumber  be  manufactured  for 
less  than  $15  per  M  where  all  expenses  are  included. 

Sitka  spruce,  the  commonest  species,  cuts  the  following  per- 
centages of  grades  on  the  average: 

Per  cent 

Clear 15 

No.  I  common 20 

No.  2 IS 

Box 20 

Dimension 20 

CuU 5 

95 

For  the  mill  run  the  pre-war  price  was  $15  per  M  but  the  demand 
for  airplane  spruce  has,  of  course,  forced  this  up.  For  hemlock 
the  demand  has  been  and  is  less  so  that  the  mill  run  value  is  at 
least  $2  lower.  Cedar  goes  mostly  into  shingles  where  it  has 
brought  a  mill  run  wholesale  price  of  about  $18  per  M.  Con- 
sequently there  is  a  very  small  margin  for  stumpage  and  profit. 


144  ALASKA 

On  the  Tongass  National  Forest  the  following  stumpage  prices 
prevailed  in  191 7: 

PerM 

Cedar $2 .  50 

Spruce 2 .  00 

Hemlock i .  00 

In  general,  therefore,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  there  is  very  Httle  profit 
in  manufacturing  lumber  in  southwestern  Alaska.  Wages  and 
suppUes  are  high.  Unless  there  is  an  active  local  demand  mills 
cannot  operate  successfully.  Competition  on  the  general  mar- 
ket is  out  of  the  question. 

The  manufacture  of  wood  pulp  is  a  dififerent  proposition.  The 
finished  product  can  be  marketed  successfully  in  the  Pacific 
Coast  cities  to  the  south  Hke  Seattle,  Portland  and  San  Francisco. 
In  addition  to  accessible  timber  there  are  many  excellent  water- 
powers  within  reach  of  tidewater.  Consequently  pulp  mills  are 
being  installed  even  tho  a  large  initial  investment  is  required 
which  makes  their  minimum  period  of  profitable  operation  at 
least  10  years.     Both  hemlock  and  spruce  are  being  used. 

The  shingle  business  is  profitable  enough  in  normal  years  to 
justify  placing  an  Alaskan  product  on  the  general  market  where 
red  cedar  is  abundant.  But  it  only  occurs  sparingly.  The  mills 
which  have  been  operating  are  therefore  small  affairs  merely 
supplying  the  local  market. 

While  all  woods  work  is  best  carried  on  along  the  southern 
coast  in  the  summer  time,  estimating,  at  least,  in  the  interior 
can  be  done  most  advantageously  during  the  winter.  There  are 
no  mosquitoes  then,  the  wet  places  are  frozen  over,  and  there  is 
enough  snow  for  snowshoes  or  skies.  Of  course  it  is  cold,  but  a 
dry  cold  in  which  much  lower  temperatures  can  be  borne  than  in 
a  wet  climate.  Travel,  off  the  short  railroad  lines,  is  entirely  by 
dog  team,  reindeer  or  on  foot. 

Two  factors  prevent  rapid  and  cheap  work.  The  timber  is 
small  and  the  bunches  of  merchantable  trees  are  unevenly  dis- 
tributed. As  explained  above  the  character  of  the  soil  determines 
in  large  measure  the  composition  and  quality  of  the  stands. 
Hence  the  timber  fit  for  sawing  is  confined  to  the  river  bottoms 


LAND  VALUES  145 

and  is  limited  in  extent.  In  fact  this  is  much  like  a  second  growth 
woodlot  region  in  size  of  the  timber  and  extent  of  the  stands. 

The  logging  methods  are  different,  however.  While  the  mills 
are  small  they  are  permanent  and  draw  their  lumber  from  a  con- 
siderable area  by  driving  the  streams.  This  means  summer 
operation  at  the  mill  but  the  woods  work  may  well  be  carried  on 
during  the  \vinter.  The  snow  is  not  heavy  enough  to  interfere. 
It  is  merely  sufficient  to  make  skidding  to  the  stream  bank  easy; 
consequently  the  modus  operandi  is  similar  to  that  on  small  jobs 
in  the  northeastern  United  States.  The  trees  are  felled  and 
bucked  early  in  the  fall  and  then  the  logs  are  skidded  to  the 
water's  edge  when  the  snow  comes.  There  they  stay  until  the 
spring  break  up  carries  them  to  the  mill. 

On  account  of  the  high  cost  of  supplies  and  consequent  high 
wages  logging  costs  are  much  above  ordinary  standards.  Kel- 
logg reports  that  in  1909  the  Fairbanks  mills  were  paytng  $20  per 
M  for  ordinary  spruce  logs  and  $25  for  extra  long  ones.  Most 
of  this  charge  represents  logging  costs  because  the  Land  Office 
was  only  charging  a  stumpage  price  of  $1  per  M  for  timber  on 
Government  land.  There  is,  therefore,  some  compensation  to 
the  mill  operator  in  the  sale  values  of  lumber.  Again  quoting 
Kellogg  "common  lumber  brings  about  $35  per  M  at  Fairbanks; 
boat  lumber,  which  is  of  extra  length  and  must  be  entirely  sound, 
$80  a  thousand."  Allowing  $6  per  M  for  miUing  and  yard  charges 
there  is  a  probable  margin  of  $5  to  $10  per  M  for  profit.  Ex- 
pressed on  an  acreage  basis,  the  net  yield  per  acre  would  not 
ordinarily  exceed  $150  for  lumber.  To  this  might  in  some  cases 
be  added  $20  for  cordwood,  but  usually  cordwood  cutting  is  a 
separate  operation.  Birch  and  spruce  bring  the  best  prices,  $10 
a  cord  in  Fairbanks  in  1909  and  $6  to  $8  on  the  river  bank.  The 
usual  price  for  cutting  was  $4  at  that  time  so  that  there  is  a  mar- 
gin of  about  $4  for  profit,  the  stumpage  charge  of  25  cents  being 
negligible.  Hence  a  good  stand  of  cordwood  averaging  10  cords 
per  acre  would  }deld  a  net  return  of  $40. 

Land  Values. —  When  land  is  not  mineral  bearing  there  is  a 
limited  range  of  possible  uses  in  Alaska.  Tillage  in  the  south- 
western part  is  greatly  restricted  by  the  small  demands  of  the 


146  ALASKA 

scant  population  and  the  limited  area  of  soil  free  enough  from 
stones.  A  dense  population,  of  course,  forces  the  cultivation  of 
even  the  steepest  and  rockiest  soils  but  there  is  only  one  town  with 
a  population  of  over  10,000  people  and  not  more  than  a  half 
dozen  with  1000  or  more  people.  Taking  the  territory  as  a 
whole  there  is  only  one  inhabitant  to  every  nine  square  miles. 
Hence,  even  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  larger  towns,  tillage  land 
does  not  bring  a  high  price.  An  additional  reason  is,  of  course, 
the  climate  which  sets  very  definite  limitations  on  the  variety  of 
crops.  These  three  factors,  the  small  amount  of  level,  stone-free 
soil,  the  limited  demand,  and  the  rigorous  climate  have  kept  the 
price  of  agricultural  land  low  even  in  southwestern  Alaska  and 
in  the  central  part  of  the  territory  they  are  even  more  restrictive. 
It  is  only  in  the  vicinity  of  the  larger  towns  that  more  than  $20 
an  acre  may  be  obtained  for  stump  land  to  be  used  for  tillage. 

The  use  of  cutover  land  for  grazing  Ukewise  offers  no  adequate 
market  for  the  great  bulk  of  timberland.  Grazing  never  can 
become  an  important  industry  because  there  is  not  the  chance  to 
produce  feed  to  carry  the  stock  thru  the  long  winters.  This 
holds  true  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  horses  have  been  known  to 
winter  in  the  interior  without  shelter.  They  pawed  thru  the 
light  snow  and  subsisted  on  the  dried  grass,  but  this  was  mere 
existence. 

For  the  production  of  timber  the  lands  have  a  low  valuation 
because  even  in  the  southwestern  portion  growth  is  relatively 
slow.  In  the  interior  the  yields  are  so  meagre  that  only  very  low 
returns  can  be  expected  from  land  devoted  to  timber  production. 
In  fact  only  the  best  of  the  coast  forests  will  show  land  values  of 
$5  or  better  for  timber  production  and  yet  this  is  the  highest  use 
to  which  large  portions  of  Alaska  can  be  devoted.  In  fact  the 
burden  of  proof  should  always  be  upon  the  other  possible  uses. 
In  other  words,  while  the  returns  from  timber  production  per  se 
are  low  they  are  much  greater  than  from  tillage  or  grazing  in 
practically  every  case.  In  addition  the  indirect  returns  of  the 
forest,  its  stream  protective  value  especially  where  water  powers 
are  concerned  and  its  aesthetic  value  should  always  be  con- 
sidered. 


TITLES  147 


Titles. —  Since  the  township  system  with  sections  a  mile  square 
is  being  extended  to  Alaska  its  land  title  problems  are  no  different 
from  those  of  the  newer  parts  of  the  west.  Tracts  are  easy  to 
locate  on  the  ground  and  claims  of  title  are  short  and  hence  free 
from  complications. 


CHAPTER  XIX 
PORTO   RICO 

General  Conditions. —  As  in  temperate  climates  the  amount  of 
available  moisture  is  the  controlling  factor  in  tropical  tree  dis- 
tribution. This  is  the  amount  left  in  the  soil  after  that  evapo- 
rated and  that  which  is  run  off  is  deducted  from  the  total  annual 
precipitation.  For  Porto  Rico  the  latter  varies  from  169  to  21 
inches.  The  trade  winds  are  the  dominant  influence.  Where 
they  blow  directly  of!  the  sea  the  rainfall  is  abundant  but  where 
they  must  rise  up  over  a  mountain  range  the  leeward  side  is 
invariably  dry.  This  accounts  for  the  great  variation  in  annual 
precipitation.  The  south  or  leeward  side  is  sheltered  from  the 
trade  -svinds  by  three  ranges  of  mountains  which  comprise  the 
greater  part  of  the  islands.  Hence  it  is  only  the  northern  slopes 
of  these  mountains  that  are  well  enoughVatered  to  support  vigor- 
ous tree  growth  because  the  evaporation  and  runoflf  are  so  great 
in  the  tropics  that  the  total  annual  precipitation  must  be  at  least 
60  inches  to  support  dense  vegetation.  Its  distribution  is  a  mat- 
ter of  secondary  importance  since  many  tree  species  are  able  to 
endure  a  prolonged  dry  season  by  shedding  their  leaves. 

The  great  evaporation  due  to  high  temperatures  has  already 
been  referred  to  above;  76°  F.  is  the  annual  mean  for  the  whole 
island.  This  means,  of  course,  tiiat  there  is  no  cessation  o!  growth 
thruout  the  year  by  reason  of  cold. 

The  effect  of  the  mountain  ranges  on  the  distribution  of  rain- 
fall has  already  been  described.  To  give  a  more  definite  picture 
of  the  island  it  is  merely  necessary  to  add  that  only  20  per  cent 
is  plains  country  while  the  remaining  80  per  cent  is  made  up  of 
mountains,  ranging  in  elevation  from  a  few  hundred  feet  above 
sea  level  to  a  maximum  of  3400  feet.  From  the  mountains  flow 
over  1300  named  streams  of  which  the  Plata  River  is  the  largest 
and  longest. 

Unfortunately  not  enough  is  known  about  the  tree  distribution 
148 


GENERAL   CONDITIONS 


149 


to  make  tree  types  based  on  differences  in  soil  conditions  as  well 
as  climatic  differences.  That  can  only  come  with  more  intensive 
study  than  even  was  possible  for  L.  S.  Murphy  in  his  careful  ex- 
amination of  the  forest  resources  of  the  island.*  In  view  of 
more  detailed  information  his  types  are  followed,  viz. : 

Per  cent 

1.  Mangrove  type 8 

2.  Dry  tidal  woodland  type 

3.  Moist  deciduous  type 7 

4.  Rain  forest  type 62 

5.  Dry  deciduous  type 23 

The  area  percentages  do  not  represent  present  acreages  but  the 
areas  contained  within  the  various  types  now  and  before  the 
settlement  of  the  island. 

The  first,  or  mangrove  type,  is  confined  to  the  margins  of  tide 
water  not  subject  to  strong  wave  action  and  on  the  northern  and 
eastern  sides  of  the  island  where  the  precipitation  is  high.  In 
other  words,  it  needi  protection  from  direct  wind  and  abundant 
moisture.  Hence,  on  the  leeward  south  and  west  portions  of  the 
island  where  the  rain  bearing  winds  are  shut  off  by  the  mountains 
the  type  is  only  found  along  the  mouths  of  the  larger  streams 
where  the  sea  water  is  diluted  enough  to  offset  the  lack  of  rain 
water.  Commercially  the  mangrove  type  is  valuable  for  two 
purposes,  firewood  and  tanning  material.  Virgin  stands  should 
yield  six  cords  per  acre  of  fuel  and  10  tons  of  bark,  but  there  are 
few  such  stands  in  Porto  Rico  because  this  type  is  usually  found 
close  to  the  settlements  and  has  consequently  been  heavily 
exploited. 

Immediately  above  the  mangrove  swamps  on  the  sandy  and 
gravelly  beaches  occurs  a  type  which  has  become  purely  man- 
made  in  its  composition.  This  is  where  the  introduced  cocoanut 
palm  has  taken  root  most  readily  until  it  is  characteristic  of  the 
West  Indies  that  the  shores  of  the  sheltered  coast  Hne  should  be 
fringed  with  stands  of  this  exotic  species.  In  fact  it  is  impossible 
to  determine  at  this  time  what  the  original  species  were  but  rather 

*  U.  S.  Forest  Service  Bulletin  354,  "  The  Forests  of  Porto  Rico,"  L.  S.  Murphy^ 
1916. 


I50  PORTO  RICO 

than  name  it  after  the  dominant  tree  at  present  Murphy  has  pre- 
ferred to  call  it  the  "  dry  tidal  woodland  type." 

The  next  two  types  contained  the  greatest  amount  of  timber 
before  settlement  disturbed  natural  conditions  because  they 
occupied  the  portions  of  the  island  that  are  favored  with  heavy 
precipitation.  The  first  of  these,  the  moist  deciduous  type,  is 
confined  to  areas  having  at  least  60  inches  of  rainfall  but  with  a 
short  but  distinct  dry  season  which  forces  many  of  the  trees  to 
shed  their  leaves.  Most  of  the  type  has  been  cleared  for  tillage 
but  a  few  remnants  indicate  its  composition.  Tabanuco — Da- 
cryodes  excelsa  Vahl  —  is  the  only  important  species  which  can 
be  used  as  a  substitute  for  softwood.  Its  wood  is  similar  to  that 
of  yellow  poplar  and  the  tree  is  also  found  in  pure  stands  so  that 
it  may  be  logged  cheaply.  The  other  commercial  species  in  this 
moist  deciduous  type  are  hardwoods  not  suitable  for  general 
construction  work  but  mainly  used  for  cabinet  work. 

The  rain  forest  type,  on  the  other  hand,  which  is  characterized 
by  the  lack  of  a  dry  season  and  abundant  precipitation  thruout 
the  year  has  several  important  species  which  have  wood  soft 
enough  to  make  good  substitutes  for  pine.  The  most  valuable  of 
these  are: 

Cedro  —  Cedrela  Odorata  L. 
Tabanuco  —  Dacryodes  excelsa  Vahl. 
Laurel  sabino  —  Magnolis  splendeus  Urba 
Guaraguao  —  Guarea  trichihoides  L. 

All  are  large  trees,  that  is,  over  75  feet  in  height  and  three  feet  in 
diameter  when  mature.  Best  of  all  they  form  stands  dense 
enough  to  log  economically;  15,000  board  feet  per  acre  is  not 
uncommon  in  virgin  stands.  In  addition  there  are  scattered 
hardwoods  Uke  mahogany  —  Swietenia  mahagoni  Jacq  —  and 
ausubo  —  Sider  oxylon  foetidissimum  Jacq  —  valuable  on  ac- 
count of  their  durability  and  ornamental  qualities  to  increase 
the  productivity  of  this  type.  Unfortunately  very  little  of  the 
original  forest  is  now  left  in  this  type  because  the  land  has  been 
practically  all  cleared  for  agriculture. 

The  dry  deciduous  type  is  preeminently  the  home  of   the 


GENERAL  CONDITIONS  151 

heavy,  hard  woods  like  lignum  vitae,  ebony,  etc.  The  dry 
season  is  long,  so  long  in  fact  that  the  trees  are  not  able  to  attain 
large  diameter  or  height  growth.  Sixty  feet  for  the  latter  and 
two  feet  for  the  former  are  the  maxima.  Neither  are  the  stands 
dense  and  except  for  the  undergrowth  of  cacti  a  horse  may  be 
ridden  anywhere.  At  the  same  time  the  following  species  have 
such  valuable  quahties  that  they  are  logged  in  spite  of  their 
short  and  crooked  boles: 

Cabinet  woods. 
Lignum  vitae  —  Guajacum  officinale  L. 
Algarroba  —  Hymenaea  courbaril  L. 
Moca  —  Andira  jamaicensis  (W.  W.)  Urb. 
Dye  wood  —  logwood  —  Haematoxylum  campech. 
Corkwood  or  balsa  wood.     Oshroma  lagopus  Siv. 

But  highly  prized  as  these  species  are  they  do  not  oflfer  attractive 
logging  because  they  never  occur  in  pure  stands  but  are  found 
singly,  seldom  more  than  one  to  the  acre  of  any  one  species. 
Consequently  even  virgin  stands  are  low  in  yield,  rarely  exceeding 
2000  board  feet  per  acre. 

Murphy's  estimate  of  the  present  stand  is  2,487,000  cords,  or 
approximately  one  cord  per  acre,  only  half  of  which  can  be  sawn 
into  logs.  Hence,  it  is  evident  that  except  in  the  most  inacces- 
sible places  there  is  not  enough  timber  to  attract  a  lumberman. 
Nothing  else  can  be  expected  when  it  is  remembered  that  the 
rural  population  is  denser  than  in  any  state  of  the  Union.  In 
fact  only  2  per  cent  of  the  total  land  area  still  has  virgin  forests 
and  not  more  than  8  per  cent  has  saw  timber.  The  rest  of  the 
20  per  cent  is  simply  brushland  which  will  yield  merely  firewood. 


CHAPTER  XX 
PHILIPPINES 

The  Philippine  Islands  are  one  of  the  few  reservoirs  of  tropical 
timber  which  have  been  carefully  investigated.  The  Spanish 
Government  had  granted  very  few  alienations  so  that  when  the 
United  States  took  possession  of  the  islands  in  1898  there  were 
41,000  square  miles  of  virgin  forests  placed  under  our  control. 
Since  that  time  the  Philippine  Bureau  of  Forestry  has  been  sys- 
tematically estimating  the  stands,  looking  for  suitable  logging 
chances  and  testing  the  different  kinds  of  timber.  Hence,  there 
are  few  equal  areas  of  tropical  woodland  which  have  been  so 
thoroughly  described.  The  data  here  presented  were  obtained 
from  the  publications  of  the  Insular  government  and  special 
papers  in  the  technical  journals. 

The  total  land  area  in  the  islands  of  123,000  square  miles  is 
divided  as  follows: 

Per  cent 

Tillage 10 

Grassland 40 

Second  growth  tiinberland i6| 

Virgin  forest 333 

100 

Only  the  virgin  forest  has  been  reported  upon  by  the  Philippine 
Bureau  of  Forestry.  The  second  growth  stands  occur  on  areas 
which  have  reforested  after  being  abandoned  for  tillage  and  do  not 
contain  merchantable  timber  in  amounts  large  enough  to  repay 
anything  but  local  development  on  a  small  scale. 

The  Bureau  of  Forestry  has  divided  the  virgin  forest  into  the 
following  forest  types: 

Per  cent  of 
virgin  forest  area 

Dipterocarp  types 75 

Molave  type 10 

Pine  type 5 

Mangrove  t>'pe 2 

Mossy  (mountain)  forest  tj^je 8 

100 
152 


DIPTEROCARP  TYPES  I 53 

Dipterocarp  Types. —  Commercially  as  well  as  in  extent  the  dip- 
terocarp  types  are  the  most  important.  The  average  stands  per 
acre  of  valuable  timber  range  from  2  to  45 M  board  feet  with 
an  average  of  loM.  Fortunately,  too,  a  high  percentage  of  the 
stands  consists  of  species  which  yield  easily  worked  construction 
lumber  similar  in  characteristics  to  the  yellow  poplar  of  the 
southern  Appalachians.  In  fact,  the  determination  of  this  impor- 
tant point  was  unique  in  tropical  lumbering.  It  had  been  assumed 
heretofore  that  the  only  valuable  species  were  the  cabinet  woods 
like  mahogany,  ebony,  and  lignum  vitae  and  that  tropical  build- 
ing construction  must  depend  upon  the  pines  of  the  temperate 
zone  for  its  cheap  building  material.  Moreover,  this  puts  an 
entirely  different  aspect  on  things  for  the  lumberman.  The 
cabinet  woods  do  not  occur  in  heavy  stands  but  scattered  singly 
so  that  only  the  crudest  logging  methods  have  been  employed  in 
their  exploitation  but  a  stand  of  loM  board  feet  per  acre  justifies 
the  installation  of  the  economical  steam  skidding  methods 
developed  for  the  heavy  stands  of  the  northwest  and  reduces 
greatly  the  cost  per  M  of  getting  out  tropical  lumber. 

Of  all  the  dipterocarp  types  the  one  with  the  heaviest  stands  per 
acre  is  the  lauan  type  on  which  the  lauans,  with  wood  Kke  our 
yellow  poplar,  predominate,  and  in  which  stands  of  45M  per  acre 
are  not  uncommon.  This  occurs,  as  might  be  expected,  on  the 
deep  soiled  sites  where  the  rainfall  is  evenly  distributed  thruout 
the  year  and  abundant,  i.e.  over  60  inches  per  annum.  Given 
plenty  of  precipitation  it  may  extend  up  to  an  elevation  of  1000 
feet  above  sea  level  where  the  temperature  conditions  become 
unfavorable.  A  good  idea  of  the  composition  of  the  type  may 
be  obtained  from  the  following  table  which  is  based  on  the 
measurement  of  over  100  acres  of  strip  surveys: 

Per  cent 

Red  lauan 41 

Almon-lauan 20 

Apitong 14 

Tanguile 13 

White  lauan 


Bagtican  lauan . 

Other  species 6 

100 


154  PHILIPPINES 

The  red,  almon,  white  and  bagtican  lauan  and  tanguile  are  all 
suitable  for  light  and  medium  construction  work  having  wood 
similar  to  that  of  yellow  poplar  and  Douglas  fir,  hard  pine.  This 
means  that  they  are  not  durable  in  contact  with  the  ground  or 
resistant  to  white  ant  attack  but  neither  are  their  competitors. 
Nevertheless,  they  can  fill  the  demand  in  the  tropics  which  is 
now  being  met  by  importations  of  northern  softwoods.  Further- 
more, the  better  grades  are  being  shipped  to  the  United  States  as 
"  Philippine  mahogany."  Apitong,  altho  also  a  dipterocarp,  is 
harder  and  heavier  than  the  lauan  group  and  tanguile.  It  is 
suitable  for  heavy  construction  work  where  it  will  not  be  in  con- 
tact with  the  ground,  and  enters  directly  into  competition  with 
the  imported  hard  pine. 

The  second  dipterocarp  type,  the  lauan  hagachac  type,  occupies 
sites  similar  climatically  to  those  of  the  lauan  type  but  the  growth 
conditions  are  less  favorable  because  during  the  rainy  season  there 
is  an  excess  of  soil  moisture  in  the  bottomlands  which  this  type 
preempts.  Light  construction  woods  like  lauan  and  amugius 
make  up  41  per  cent  of  the  total  average  stand  of  16,000  board 
feet  per  acre  while  the  heavier  woods  suitable  for  interior  framing 
compose  25  per  cent.  Among  the  remaining  34  per  cent,  narra, 
the  most  common  commercial  wood  of  the  Philippines  and  a  sub- 
stitute for  mahogany  and  padouk,  is  the  only  one  that  deserves 
special  mention.  It  makes  up  5  per  cent  of  the  total  stand. 
Summing  up,  7 1  per  cent  of  the  total  volume  of  this  type  finds  a 
ready  sale  on  the  local  markets  with  the  export  trade  compara- 
tively undeveloped  as  yet. 

In  the  yacal-lauan  type  a  smaller  percentage  of  the  total  stand 
is  readily  marketable  but  the  stands  are  heavier.  Of  the  average 
stand  of  28M  feet  per  acre  17  per  cent  consists  of  the  softer  dip- 
terocarps,  20  per  cent  of  the  harder  varieties  of  wood  suitable  for 
interior  framing  but  not  where  great  durability  is  required,  and 
20  per  cent  of  durable  woods  which  can  be  used  in  contact  with 
the  ground  and  will  resist  white  ant  attacks.  This  type  occurs  on 
volcanic  soil  at  low  elevations  where  the  rainfall  is  abundant  but 
irregular.  The  dry  season  is  often  prolonged  enough  to  cause  the 
fall  of  many  of  the  leaves  so  that  the  t>pe  is  semi-deciduous. 


MOLAVE  TYPE 


I5S 


A  dry  season  and  consequent  falling  of  the  leaves  is  also  charac- 
teristic of  the  lauan-apitong  type.  This  is,  in  fact,  the  main 
character  which  separates  it  from  the  lauan  type.  Otherwise,  it 
occupies  much  the  same  sort  of  sites,  the  foothills  below  an  eleva- 
tion of  400  meters  above  sea  level.  Ordinarily,  no  durable 
woods  occur  in  this  type  but  42  per  cent  of  the  average  stand  of 
sSM  feet  per  acre  are  the  harder  dipterocarps  suitable  for  interior 
framing  and  cabinet  purposes.  The  soft  dipterocarps  compose 
26  per  cent  of  the  stand. 

The  remaining  dipterocarp  type,  the  tanguile-oak  type,  has 
not  yet  been  so  thoroly  studied  as  the  other  types  because  it  is 
not  so  important  commercially  on  account  of  its  relative  inacces- 
sibility. It  occupies  the  middle  mountain  slopes  between  the 
lauan  and  lauan-apitong  types  and  the  mossy-forest  type  at  ele- 
vations between  400  and  900  meters  above  sea  level.  Tanguile 
is  the  important  species  commercially.  Its  wood  is  fairly  soft 
but  not  durable  so  that  it  is  mainly  used  for  interior  construction 
purposes. 

The  composition  of  the  dipterocarp  types  is  summed  up  in  the 
following  table: 

COMPOSITION  OF  DIPTEROCARP  TYPES  v 


Types 

Dipterocarps  suitable 

for 
construction  woods 

Durable 
woods 

Misc. 
species 

Total 
stand  pet 

Soft 

Hard 

Lauan      

Per  cent 
80 
41 
17 
26 

Per  cent 
IS 

25 

20 
(Data 

Per  cent 

5 
20 

lacking) 

Per  cent 

5 

29 

43 

32 

Mbd.ft.   : 

45 

Lauan-hagachac  

16 

28 

Lauan-apitong 

28 

Tanguile-oak.    . 

Molave  Type. —  The  molave,  a  near  relative  of  teak  and  a  sub- 
stitute for  it,  gives  its  name  to  a  type  which  occurs  on  dry  lime- 
stone soils  where  the  drainage  is  so  rapid  that  there  is  insufRcient 
moisture  for  dense  growth  even  tho  the  dry  season  is  short.  The 
type  does  not  occur  at  elevations  greater  than  500  feet  above  sea 
level  so  that  the  temperature  conditions  are  always  tropical  in 


156  PHILIPPINES 

character.  The  great  evaporation  and  rapid  runoff  produce  con- 
ditions which  are  not  favorable  to  either  dense  growth,  rapid 
growth  or  great  individual  development.  The  traces  are  short 
and  far  apart.  Commercially,  however,  this  has  been  and  is  an 
important  type  because  of  its  accessibility  and  the  great  demand 
for  the  hard,  durable  woods  Uke  molave,  narra,  trudalo,  acle, 
banuyo,  etc.  Hence,  altho  the  average  stand  under  virgin  con- 
ditions is  only  3M  per  acre  the  type  has  been  heavily  exploited. 

Mangrove  Type. — Another  type  which  has  relatively  low'stands 
per  acre  but  which  has  been  heavily  exploited  by  reason  of  its 
accessibility  and  the  special  value  of  its  products  is  the  man- 
grove type  which  fringes  the  shore  line  of  protected  salt  waters. 
The  trees  cannot  stand  heavy  surf  but  form  a  low  dense  growth 
in  such  relatively  sheltered  locations  as  the  muddy  flats  at  the 
mouths  of  the  larger  streams.  Under  virgin  conditions  the  stand 
per  acre  has  been  found  to  run  as  high  as  13M  board  feet  of 
saw  lumber  altho  this  included  a  relatively  small  proportion  of 
the  trees.  The  type  has  been  principally  exploited  for  firewood 
and  for  tanbark  and  stands  of  five  cords  per  acre  or  10  tons  of 
bark  are  not  unusual.  Growth  is  fairly  rapid  so  that  the  same 
area  may  be  cut  over  for  fuel  and  bark  at  intervals  of  at  least 
20  years. 

Pine  Type. —  Stands  of  pine  averaging  7M  per  acre  and  made 
up  of  trees  100  feet  high  and  30  inches  in  diameter  occur  in  the 
high  plateau  region  of  northern  and  central  Luzon  at  elevations 
ranging  from  3000  to  5000  feet  above  sea  level.  The  climate  is 
distinctly  cooler  than  at  sea  level  so  that  growth  is  fairly  rapid 
in  spite  of  the  long  dry  season.  Unlike  many  species  of  pine 
these  stands  can  stand  considerable  burning  and  are  able  to  hold 
their  own  against  the  encroachments  of  the  grass  in  spite  of  the 
frequent  fires. 

Beach  Type. —  On  the  sandy  beaches  above  tide  water  which 
have  not  been  preempted  for  settlement  and  consequently  had 
their  original  vegetation  much  modified  there  are  light  stands  not 
exceeding  3M  board  feet  per  acre  of  such  durable  woods  as  ipil, 
narra,  dungon,  palo  maria  and  agoho  scattered  among  less  val- 
uable species. 


TIMBER  VALUES  1^7 

Mossy  Tjrpe.  —  Another  relatively  unimportant  type  is  the 
dense  but  scrubby  tree  growth  found  on  the  exposed  mountain 
summits.  None  of  these  produces  in  sufficient  amount  to  pay 
for  its  exploitation. 

Timber  Values.  —  The  determining  factor  in  the  methods  of 
tropical  estimating  are  the  low  values  of  stumpage  per  M  and  per 
acre.  Even  the  valuable  cabinet  woods  like  mahogany  and 
ebony  are  worth  very  little  standing.  They  only  become  so 
when  transported  long  distances  to  the  user.  As  a  consequence 
it  is  not  worth  while  to  estimate  them  closely.  It  is  sufficient  to 
determine  that  there  is  at  least  so  much  on  a  given  tract.  In 
other  words,  estimates  of  tropical  timber  need  to  be  especially 
conservative.  A  wide  margin  of  safety  must  be  present  in  an 
enterprise  which  involves  so  many  risks.  By  way  of  comparison 
the  woodlots  of  New  England  lie  at  the  other  extreme.  The 
manufacturing  plants  are  close  at  hand  and  transportation  never 
makes  up  more  than  20  per  cent  of  the  sale  value  and  from 
50  to  25  per  cent  is  paid  for  stumpage. 

The  problem  being  then  to  determine  within  25  per  cent  how 
much  timber  there  is  on  a  tract  relatively  crude  methods  may  be 
used,  provided  care  is  taken  at  every  point  to  be  on  the  safe  side. 
Liberal  allowance  must  be  made  for  defect.  While  strips  are 
safer,  sample  plots  will  often  be  good  enough  especially  for  large 
tracts.  They  should,  however,  be  distributed  in  some  regular 
maimer  or  the  tendency  will  be  to  take  them  in  the  better  timber. 
Preferably  they  should  be  at  fixed  distances  apart  but  time  inter- 
vals will  serve  for  large  tracts  if  the  rate  of  travel  is  kept  uniform. 
For  example  a  tract  may  be  traversed  at  intervals  of  a  mile  and 
sample  plots  one-quarter  acre  in  size  taken  every  one-quarter  mile. 

The  costs  of  such  estimates  will  necessarily  be  low  per  acre  but 
relatively  they  will  be  high  because  of  the  cost  of  travel  to  the 
tropics.  There  are  few  firms  that  make  a  specialty  of  estimating 
tropical  timber  and  maintain  local  agents.  Consequently  it  is 
usually  necessary  to  send  from  the  temperate  zone  a  man  who 
is  sufficiently  acquainted  with  tropical  conditions  to  make  a  safe 
estimate.  But  even  under  these  circumstances  a  tract  of 
100,000  acres  ought  to  be  valued  for  two  cents  per  acre. 


158  PHILIPPINES 

The  same  principle  holds  with  reference  to  stumpage  prices 
that  applied  to  estimating.  An  ample  margin  must  be  ensured 
on  account  of  the  risks  involved.  Markets  are  uncertain, 
methods  are  crude  and  inefhcient  and  labor  unskilled  in  the  aver- 
age tropical  lumbering  job.  For  example,  mahogany  logs  have 
commonly  been  felled  with  an  axe,  dragged  overland  with  oxen 
or  driven  down  the  nearest  stream.  Even  with  cheap  native 
labor  these  operations  have  been  expensive  so  that  there  are 
very  few  mills  whose  logs  cost  less  than  $5  per  M  and  many 
where  the  cost  is  two  or  three  times  that.  Of  course,  the  opera- 
tions equipped  with  modern  steam  skidding  appliances  do  not 
have  to  pay  so  much  but  they  are  the  exception  rather  than  the 
rule.  In  fact,  they  are  only  feasible  in  heavy  stands  Hke  the  dip- 
terocarp  forests  of  the  Philippines.  The  logging  of  the  better 
known  tropical  woods  like  mahogany,  West  Indian  cedar,  ebony, 
etc.,  is  still  carried  on  in  a  primitive  way  because  the  trees  do 
not  occur  in  dense  stands  but  grow  scattered. 

Likewise,  the  milling  is  expensive  for  several  reasons.  -In  the 
first  place  the  timber  is  generally  hard,  heavy  and  difficult  to 
season.  Hardwood  mill  costs  are  always  greater  in  the  states 
than  softwood  costs.  In  the  tropics  there  are  two  other  factors 
which  need  consideration.  Skilled  labor  is  hard  to  obtain  and 
hold.  It  must  be  imported  at  great  cost  and  the  men  do  not 
find  living  conditions  for  themselves  and  their  families  which 
attract  them.  Furthermore,  deterioration  of  the  machinery  and 
buildings  is  very  rapid  in  the  moist,  warm  climate.  Tools  and 
machines  can  only  be  kept  in  order  by  extraordinary  vigilance. 
Hence,  mill  charges  in  the  tropics  must  be  put  at  least  50  per 
cent  higher  than  in  the  states.  There  are  in  fact  few  mills  that 
got  sawing  alone  done  for  less  than  $3  per  M  prior  to  the  War. 
Planing,  kilndrying  and  yard  charges  are  proportionately  high. 

Transportation  from  the  mill  to  market  is,  however,  the  most 
difficult  factor.  This  is,  of  course,  simply  another  way  of  saying 
that  the  tropics  are  for  the  most  part  unequipped  with  cheap 
and  rapid  means  of  moving  heavy  freight.  Water  transport  is 
the  cheapest  and  it  is  safe  to  say  that  no  sizable  sawmill  can  be 
made  to  pay  under  present  conditions  unless  it  is  on  tidewater  or 


TIMBER   V.\LUES  1 59 

a  navigable  stream.  Even  then  small  steamers  or  sailing  vessels 
must  be  relied  upon  which  are  not  built  specially  for  this  kind  of 
cargo.  In  the  Phihppines  the  cost  varied  from  $5  to  $30  per  M, 
while  an  operation  in  Brazil  marketing  its  product  in  Buenos 
Ayres  had  a  charge  of  $20  per  M  to  meet  in  191 5. 

Sale  values  in  the  wholesale  markets  may  be  illustrated  by  the 
prices  paid  in  Manila  in  19 10  when  the  softer,  non-durable  con- 
struction woods  Hke  the  dipterocarps  were  selling  for  $25  to  $30 
per  M,  hard  durable  timbers  from  $75  to  $100,  and  the  cabinet 
woods  from  $80  to  $1 50.  These  prices  would  give  ample  margins, 
especially  in  the  case  of  the  cabinet  woods,  if  there  were  no  acci- 
dents, but  the  two  limiting  factors  of  primitive  logging  methods 
and  poor  transportation  to  market  generally  cut  down  the  aver- 
age margin  to  less  than  $10  per  M. 

In  conclusion  Dr.  Whitford's  words  (Bulletin  10,  The  Forests 
of  the  Philippines,  Part  I)  may  be  used  to  give  a  bird's-eye  view 
of  the  situation  because  they  apply  to  all  kinds  of  tropical  lum- 
bering:— 

"  To  sum  up,  the  high  cost  of  placing  the  timber  of  the  Philip- 
pines on  the  market  is  due  to  the  following  causes:  (i)  The 
high  cost  of  logging,  due  principally  to  the  crude  methods  em- 
ployed and  to  lack  of  proper  supervision;  (2)  the  excessive 
cost  of  milhng,  due  to  (a)  insufl&cient  equipment  and  poor 
arrangement  of  the  mill,  (b)  to  the  difficulty  of  getting  compe- 
tent men  to  manage  the  operations,  and  (c)  to  a  consequent  loss 
in  sawing  due  to  excessive  waste  and  poorly  manufactured 
material;  (3)  as  yet  no  company  has  a  capacity  sufficient  to 
warrant  their  owning  or  hiring  vessels  especially  adapted  to 
carrying  lumber  to  the  home  or  foreign  markets.  The  condi- 
tions above  described  are  distinctly  pioneer  in  nature.  A  few 
companies  have  successfully  met  some  of  them,  but  none  have 
as  yet  succeeded  in  meeting  the  entire  situation.  WTien  they 
do,  they  will  be  able  to  compete  with  all  other  timbers  of  like 
grades  in  the  foreign  and  home  markets." 

Besides  the  value  of  the  Philippine  forests  for  the  production 
of  lumber  a  number  of  other  special  products  are  obtained  from 
them.     Fuel  purposes,  for  example,  actually  consume  a  larger 


l6o  PHILIPPINES 

total  amount  of  wood  than  lumber  uses  but  it  is  nearly  all  for 
local  consumption  and  is  gathered  in  small  amounts.  The  man- 
grove swamps  being  nearest  to  the  settlements  along  the  shores 
have  had  to  furnish  most  of  this  material.  Firewood  was  worth 
$12.50  a  cord  in  Manilla  in  1910. 

Another  important  use  of  the  mangrove  swamps  is  for  dye- 
stuff.  Tannins  are  also  obtained  from  this  type,  the  "  cutch  " 
being  made  from  the  bark.  The  resins  for  caulking,  paint  and 
illuminating  purposes  come  from  the  native  pines  and  the  diptero- 
carps.  Gutta  percha  and  rubber  can  be  obtained  from  many 
wild  species  of  trees  and  vines  and  the  cultivation  of  rubber  has 
passed  the  experimental  stage.  Various  oils  useful  for  soap  or 
medicinal  purposes  are  collected  for  local  consumption.  Tying 
material  also  comes  largely  from  the  forest.  Rattan  is  another 
tropical  forest  product  which  is  not  only  used  for  tying  large 
packages  like  bales  of  hemp  and  tobacco  but  is  also  employed  for 
furniture  and  hats.  But  unquestionably  the  erect  palms  are  the 
most  useful  of  any  single  class  of  trees.  Their  trunks  are  used  in 
building  either  on  the  round  or  split,  the  leaves  make  mats, 
roofing,  etc.,  and  the  fruit  is  edible  in  several  species. 

What  the  value  of  these  minor  products  is  per  acre  for  any 
given  type  of  forest  cannot  be  stated  in  general  terms.  Each 
case  must  be  examined  separately  because  of  the  paramount 
influence  of  local  market  conditions.  Many  of  these  have  no 
value  at  all  over  wide  areas  under  present  transportation  con- 
ditions. 

Land  Values.—  In  figuring  the  value  of  the  land  itself  in  the 
Philippines  there  are  the  same  three  possibilities  to  be  considered 
in  each  case  as  in  temperate  climates,  —  tillage,  pasturage  and 
forestry.  It  must  be  assumed  that  because  the  climate  is  warm 
enough  for  a  great  variety  of  plant  growth  that  all  soil  is  poten- 
tially tillable.  Other  factors  need  to  be  considered,  the  most 
important  of  which  are  the  amount  of  rainfall  and  the  slope  and 
to  a  lesser  degree  the  kind  of  soil,  whether  clay,  sand  or  gravel, 
and  percentage  of  rocks  in  the  surface  layer.  The  common 
conception  of  the  tropics  as  a  place  of  ample  rainfall  is  erroneous 
for  the  regions  where  the  mean  annual  precipitation  is  less  than 


TIMBER  VALUES  l6l 

30  inches.  There  must  be  at  least  that  much  to  offset  the  rapid 
evaporation  and  for  the  growing  of  crops  without  irrigation 
60  inches  well  distributed  throughout  the  year  is  a  safe  minimum. 
Consequently  there  are  some  parts  of  the  Philippines  where 
irrigation  is  the  shte  qua  non  of  successful  agriculture.  Slope  is 
the  limiting  factor  second  in  importance.  With  the  heavy 
downpours  of  rain  and  the  open  winters  slopes  cannot  be  tilled 
as  long  as  in  the  temperate  zones.  As  a  consequence  only  the 
level  lands  are  kept  in  permanent  tillage  and  clearings  made  on 
slopes  are  only  cultivated  a  few  years  before  being  allowed  to 
revert  to  tree  growth.  The  character  of  the  soil  is  of  importance 
primarily  from  the  standpoint  of  its  ability  to  hold  water.  The 
open  gravels  and  sands  are  only  tillable  where  the  rainfall  is  over 
60  inches  per  annum.  The  percentage  of  rocks  in  the  upper  layer 
is  of  less  importance  in  the  tropics  than  in  temperate  regions 
because  the  processes  of  disintegration  are  rapid  and  surface  rocks 
quickly  break  down.  Summing  up,  then,  only  the  level  clays  and 
loams  are  desirable  for  tillage  and  the  rainfall  must  be  abundant 
or  irrigation  possible.  Such  lands  near  the  market  and  extensive 
enough  to  make  up  large  units  are  worth  fully  $100  an  acre 
when  ready  for  cultivation.  The  extent  of  the  tillable  area  is  a 
matter  of  prime  importance  because  tropical  agriculture  is  neces- 
sarily a  large  scale  enterprise  because  of  the  remoteness  of 
markets.  Aside  from  the  trifling  local  demand  which  is  mainly 
met  by  produce  from  their  own  gardens  all  foodstuffs  must  be 
shipped  to  the  temperate  regions  for  the  feeding  of  the  dense 
populations  there.  This  means  that  transportation  is  the  con- 
trolling factor.  Consequently  there  are  no  large  plantations 
which  do  not  have  their  own  wharfs  or  ready  access  to  ones 
where  sea-going  vessels  may  dock.  Furthermore,  a  plantation 
must  have  its  own  fleet  of  vessels  or  be  at  the  mercy  of  the 
transportation  companies.  In  other  words  the  tropics  are  no 
place  for  the  small  scale  agriculturist.  Only  large  concerns 
farming  vast  areas  and  shipping  in  their  own  bottoms  have  been 
successful. 

Grazing  is,  as  always,  a  low  use  of  land  and  this  dictum  applies 
with  special  force  to  the  tropics  because  there  are  no  high  class 


1 62  PHILIPPINES 

grazing  lands.  A  sod  cannot  form  except  on  level  land  suited  to 
tillage.  The  slopes  erode  as  fast  as  the  tree  growth  is  cleared 
from  them.  This  should  not  be  understood  to  mean  that  there 
is  not  a  large  acreage  which  is  being  used  as  range  in  the  Philip- 
pines but  it  is  in  relatively  small  bodies,  poor  in  quality  and  dete- 
riorating in  carrying  capacity.  None  of  it  is  worth  more  than 
50  cents  an  acre  for  this  purpose  alone. 

Comparatively  little  is  as  yet  known  in  regard  to  the  producing 
value  of  tropical  timberlands.  The  problem  of  determining  the 
age  of  stands  is  more  compUcated  than  in  temperate  regions 
because  annual  rings  are  not  formed.  It  becomes  necessary, 
therefore,  to  depend  upon  records  of  growth.  From  these  it 
would  appear  that  the  better  watered  soils  can  produce  stands  of 
merchantable  saw  timber  in  less  than  50  years.  Hence  it  follows 
that  tree  production  or  forestry  is  second  to  tillage  as  a  use  of 
land.  On  the  steeper  and  more  arid  soils  it  is  often  the  only 
profitable  use.  As  a  general  policy  it  may  safely  be  stated  that 
a  change  from  forestry  to  tillage  or  grazing  will  not  be  profitable 
in  the  long  run  unless  the  land  can  be  devoted  to  cultivated  crops. 

Land  Titles. —  As  explained  above,  the  title  to  the  principal 
forest  areas  in  the  Philippines  is  in  the  United  States  by  direct 
transfer  from  the  Spanish  Government.  In  the  few  cases  where 
timberland  is  in  private  hands  a  satisfactory  title  is  hard  to 
obtain.  Accurate  surveys  are  practically  unknown  and  many 
transfers  unrecorded.  Then,  too,  the  problem  of  undivided 
ownership  often  occurs.  For  example  the  title  to  a  tract  of  land 
may  rest  in  the  descendants  of  a  grantee  several  generations  back 
without  any  attempt  by  the  heirs  to  parcel  the  land  out. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

TIMBER  VALUATION 

In  the  determination  of  the  value  of  standing  timber,  or  stump- 
age  value,  the  following  four  factors  must  be  considered : 

1.  The  amount  of  the  timber  in  board  feet,  cubic  feet,  coras 

or  other  unit. 

2.  The  quahty  of  the  timber. 

3.  Sale  value  of  the  finished  product  whether  lumber,  cord- 

wood,  etc. 

4.  The  costs  of  manufacture  including  logging,  milling,  etc., 

and  a  reasonable  profit  to  the  logger  and  mill  man 

Estimating. —  It  is  not  necessary  to  discuss  here  in  detail  the 
various  methods  employed  in  determining  the  amount  of  stand- 
ing timber.  It  does  seem  apropos,  however,  to  summarize  the 
facts  which  have  been  developed  in  the  discussion  of  the  different 
types  of  timber  with  reference  to  the  costs  of  estimating. 

The  cheapest  kind  of  an  estimate  is,  of  course,  a  guess  and 
strangely  enough  this  method  is  employed  widely  with  one  of  our 
most  valuable  types  of  timber  land,  second  growth  white  pine. 
The  reasons  for  this  are  that  the  stands  are  remarkably  uniform 
in  size  and  density  while  there  is  but  one  merchantable  species 
and  the  tracts  are  small.  It  is  perfectly  possible  for  an  experi- 
enced operator  to  guess  within  5  per  cent  of  the  true  amount. 
But  no  man  would  feel  safe  in  applying  this  method  to  large  tracts 
which  he  could  not  walk  all  over  in  a  day.  Hence  it  happens 
that  large  tracts  of  cheap  stumpage  such  as  are  found  in  the 
tropics  must  be  taken  as  examples  of  the  second  cheap  method  of 
estimating,  the  sample  plot  method.  In  this  way  a  large  area  can 
be  covered  expeditiously  and  yet  sufficiently  accurate  results  ob- 
tained. For  most  cases  the  third  method  —  the  strip  system  — 
is  the  best.  Where  the  tract  is  large,  the  stand  uniform  and  the 
stumpage  cheap  the  percentage  of  the  area  actually  measured  may 

163 


l64  TIMBER  VALUATION 

be  small  while  on  small  tracts  of  valuable  timber,  and  especially 
in  complex  stands,  the  percentage  should  be  high.  As  an  illus- 
tration of  the  former  conditions  the  Douglas  fir  type  on  the 
Pacific  may  be  cited.  The  percentage  estimated  may  run  as 
low  as  I  per  cent  and  seldom  exceeds  5  per  cent.  On  the  other 
hand,  only  high  percentages  will  give  satisfactory  results  in  the 
valuable  white  pine  of  the  Lake  States  or  the  mixed  stands  in  the 
southern  Appalachian  coves.  The  following  table  summarizes 
the  methods  and  percentages  applicable  in  the  different  types: 

Per  cent 

Northern  spruce " strip  method  5  to    10 

Northern  hardrtfoods "  10  to    20 

White  pine "  25  to  100 

Swamp "  5  to    25 

Southern  hardwoods "  5  to  100 

Bottomlands "  5  to    10 

Southern  pine "  5  to    10 

Western  yellow  pine "  5  to    10 

Lodgepole  pine "  5 

Engelmann  spruce "  5  to    10 

Silver  pine "  10 

Sugar  pine "  10  to    20 

Douglas  fir "  5  to    10 

Sequoia "  10 

Alaska "  i  to      5 

Tropics strip  or  sample  plot     i  to      5 

Wages  and  food  costs  vary  in  general  directly  with  the  acces- 
sibiUty.  A  man  demands  more  to  go  into  the  wilderness  and  his 
food  costs  more  than  when  he  is  working  near  settlements. 

The  accessibility  is  also  the  most  important  factor  in  base  line 
and  corner  location.  The  longer  a  region  has  been  settled  the 
better  the  surveys  are  in  most  cases.  Unfortunately,  this  rule 
does  not  hold  for  most  of  the  thirteen  original  states.  The  south- 
eastern Atlantic  states  are  notorious  for  their  confused  and  over- 
lapping land  grants,  while  many  of  the  newly  settled  western 
states  have  fairly  good  surveys  to  tie  to,  thanks  to  the  rectan- 
gular land  survey  system. 

The  size  of  the  trees,  their  number  per  acre  and  their  variety 
are  also  factors  which  affect  the  cost  of  estimating.  Medium 
sized  trees  are  the  easiest  to  estimate  closely  while  the  stands  with 


ESTIMATING 


165 


a  great  range  in  diameter  and  height  require  constant  checking 
to  prevent  errors.  It  is,  of  course,  axiomatic  that  more  time  is 
required  to  cover  dense  stands  than  open  stands.  Likewise,  a 
large  number  of  different  species  slows  down  the  estimator. 
Estimating  in  the  mixed  stands  of  the  Southern  Appalachians 
takes  more  time  than  estimating  in  pure  stands  of  white  pine  other 
things  being  equal. 

The  following  table  summarizes  estimating  costs  including  the 
necessary  office  work  in  the  different  regions  and  offers  a  chance 
for  a  comparison  of  the  amounts  required  under  various  condi- 
tions: 


Type  of  timber 


Spruce 

Northern  hardwoods. . . 

White  pine 

Northern  swamp 

Southern  hardwoods 

Cove 

Slope 

Ridge 

Bottomlands 

Southern  pine 

Western  yellow  pine 

Lodgepole  pine 

Engelmann  spruce 

Silver  pme 

Sugar  pine 

Douglas  fir 

Redwood 

Aliqki  /  Hemlock-spruce 
^^^^•^^i  Spruce-birch.... 
Tropics , 


Per  cent 

Minimum  cost 

covered 

per  acre 

Cents 

10 

15 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

10 

25 

45 

1,0 

10 

average 
5 

S 

3 

10 

15 

10 

7h 

Minimum  costs  are  given  because  average  figures  would  be  of  little 
value  without  some  knowledge  of  the  range  and  the  upper  limits 
are  exceedingly  variable.  In  fact  the  main  use  of  the  table  is 
to  show  the  relative  costs.  For  example,  costs  are  ordinarily 
lowest  —  two  cents  to  four  cents  an  acre  —  in  such  widely 
separated  regions  as  the  western  yellow  pine  type  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains  and  the  tropics.  In  the  case  of  the  latter  the  low  per- 
centage estimated  is  sufficient  to  account  for  the  low  cost  while  the 
uniformity  of  the  stands,  freedom  from  underbrush  and  low  value 


l66  TIMBER   V.^UATION 

of  the  timber  explain  why  western  yellow  pine  can  be  estimated 
cheaply.     The  timber  of  Alaska  also  falls  into  this  group. 

In  the  next  group  —  that  in  which  the  cost  per  acre  is  seldom 
less  than  five  cents  —  are  types  from  various  parts  of  the 
United  States.  They  have  the  same  minimum  cost  for  various 
reasons.  The  lodgepole  pine  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  occurs  in 
dense  stands  of  uniform  size,  not  readily  accessible  and  hence  not 
especially  valuable.  Silver  pine  stands  on  the  other  hand  are 
valuable  but  they  are  so  uniform  in  size  and  composition  that  they 
can  be  covered  rapidly.  The  costs  for  southern  hardwoods  are 
also  low  in  spite  of  the  variety  of  species  because  of  the  low  stump- 
age  values  and  openness  of  the  stands.  This  statement  is  true 
even  tho  the  southern  hardwood  coves  contain  dense  stands  of 
valuable  species  for  the  reason  that  the  coves  form  but  a  small 
percentage  of  the  type. 

In  the  seven  to  eight  cent  group  fall  the  open  stands  but  high 
priced  stumpage  of  the  southern  pine  type;  the  dense,  inacces- 
sible Engelmann  spruce,  and  the  heavy  but  low  priced  stands  of 
Douglas  fir,  redwood  and  sugar  pine. 

Northern  hardwoods  and  northeastern  white  pine  cost  about 
the  same  per  acre  because  the  stumpage  values  are  high.  The 
greater  value  of  the  pine  offsets  the  larger  number  of  species  in 
the  hardwood  type. 

The  most  expensive  t}q3es  to  estimate  are  northern  spruce  and 
the  southern  bottomlands.  Both  have  relatively  valuable 
stumpage  and  both  are  inaccessible  with  poorly  marked  boundary 
lines. 

Quality  of  Timber.  —  Of  the  factors  that  effect  the  quafity  of 
timber,  size  is  the  most  important.  Other  things  being  equal  the 
^\^der  and  longer  a  stick  of  lumber  is  the  more  valuable  it  is.  The 
largest  sizes  can  naturally  be  secured  from  the  Pacific  Coast  where 
the  climatic  conditions  have  favored  the  growth  of  large,  tall 
trees  of  unusual  dimensions,  so  that  the  sequoias,  Douglas  fir, 
sugar  pine,  silver  pine  or  western  larch  are  sought  when  excep- 
tionally wide  or  long  lumber  is  needed.  The  east  can,  however, 
give  lumber  of  no  small  size  from  its  white  pine,  southern  yellow 
pine  and  yellow  poplar.     In  fact,  these  species  grow  large  enough 


QUALITY  OF   TIMBER  167 

for  common  uses  and  it  is  the  practice  to  cut  down  to  normal 
size  most  of  the  western  coast  lumber  put  on  the  market. 

The  other  types  of  timberland  not  listed  above  produce  medium 
sized  trees  with  the  exception  of  considerable  spruce  and  lodge- 
pole  pine  which  comes  on  the  market  in  small  sizes. 

Technical  defects  vary  with  the  use  to  which  the  trees  are  to 
be  put  and  the  species.  For  example,  less  than  10  per  cent  of  the 
average  eastern  red  spruce  tree  could  be  used  for  airplane  stock 
because  only  clear,  straight  grained  wood  would  meet  the  require- 
ments. On  the  other  hand  at  least  60  per  cent  of  a  tree  of  the 
same  species  can  be  used  for  pulp  wood.  Hence  it  is  always  neces- 
sary in  estimating  the  value  of  a  tract  of  timber  to  be  armed  with 
a  full  knowledge  of  the  uses  to  which  the  trees  are  to  be  put 
and  what  technical  defects  preclude  them  from  such  use. 
This  means  that  the  estimator  must  know  exactly  what  effect 
knots,  spiral  grain,  and  color  of  sapwood  or  heartwood  have  on 
the  sale  value  of  the  species  being  valued. 

Closely  related  to  the  deductions  for  technical  defects  are 
allowances  made  for  damage  from  fire,  insects,  fungi,  wind,  snow- 
break,  noxious  gases,  etc.  They  are  in  fact  determined  in  the 
same  way,  by  a  close  study  of  the  cull  made  at  the  sawmill  or 
manufacturing  plant.  Usually  it  is  not  necessary  or  possible  to 
separate  the  effects  of  the  different  kinds  of  damage.  Simply  a 
lump  estimate  of  cull  is  sufficient.  This  may  run  from  60  per  cent 
of  the  log  in  the  case  of  high  grade  quartered  stock  to  less  than 
2  per  cent  in  the  case  of  boxboards.  It  must  always  be  deter- 
mined locally  because  use  possibilities,  amount  and  degree  of 
damage  vary  from  tract  to  tract. 

The  ideal  to  be  attained  in  any  logging  operation  is  the  most 
complete  utilization  that  market  conditions  will  permit.  This 
should  take  into  consideration  not  only  the  logs  fit  for  lumber 
but  the  whole  tree.  By  volume  an  average  tree  is  made  up  as 
follows: 


i68 


TIMBER  VALUATION 


Stump. . . 

Bole 

Limbs . . . 
Branches 
Bark 


It  is  readily  seen  that  an  operation  which  only  takes  out  the  butt 
logs  is  utilizing  a  very  small  per  cent  of  the  whole  tree.  This 
often  falls  as  low  as  30  per  cent  where  transportation  is  expensive. 
Reports  on  the  value  of  a  tract  of  timber  should  always  take  this 
factor  into  consideration.  It  may  well  happen  that  a  tract  only 
capable  of  turning  out  low  grade  lumber,  posts  and  cordwood 
may  yield  much  more  per  acre,  gross  and  net,  than  a  tract  of  high 
quality  timber  on  which  market  conditions  do  not  permit  close 
utilization. 

Sale  Values. —  The  per  cent  of  utilization  is  also  a  very  impor- 
tant factor  in  determining  sale  values  per  acre  because  a  high 
value  per  M  may  give  no  real  notion  of  the  returns  to  be  expected 
from  a  tract  if  only  a  small  portion  of  the  tree  can  be  gotten  to 
the  sawmill.  In  this  discussion  the  value  per  acre  will,  therefore, 
be  taken  as  the  criterion  altho  lumbermen  are  more  accustomed 
to  think  in  terms  of  a  thousand  board  feet  than  in  terms  of  acres. 
In  other  words  the  point  of  view  assumed  is  that  of  the  man  who 
wants  to  know  how  much  a  given  tract  will  yield  him  rather  than 
that  of  the  operator  who  is  interested  in  turning  out  a  certain 
product. 

However,  the  determination  of  the  sale  value  per  M  is,  of 
course,  the  first  step  in  figuring  sale  values  per  acre.  A  list  is 
therefore  given  of  these  values  for  the  important  species  at  their 
nearest  market  point.  These  points  must  necessarily  vary 
because  there  is  no  central  market  in  which  all  kinds  of  lumber 
compete  on  an  equal  footing.  Western  fir,  for  example,  only 
reaches  the  Atlantic  Coast  in  the  best  grades  while  the  lower 
grades  are  widely  used  locally.  Further  it  must  be  remembered 
that  the  values  given  are  averages  for  the  log  run.     Grades  can- 


SALE  VALXJES  169 

not  be  compared  directly  because  they  are  intended  to  fill  the 
requirements  of  special  uses  to  which  other  species  may  not  be 
suited  at  all.  But  in  reaching  the  average  values  per  M,  log 
run,  the  percentage  of  the  different  grades  and  their  respective 
sale  values  must  be  considered.  This  introduces  a  serious  diffi- 
culty because  these  percentages  vary  within  wide  Umits.  Fur- 
thermore, the  prices  per  M  of  the  different  grades  are  subject  to 
fluctuations.  Consequently  it  is  impossible  to  give  even  for  a 
specified  date  absolutely  accurate  figures.  All  that  can  be  hoped 
is  that  the  figures  are  relatively  correct. 

The  first  table  is  a  hst  of  wholesale  values  by  use  classes. 
These  prices  are  intended  to  represent  the  values  at  which  retail 
yards  may  purchase  from  the  mills  that  do  their  own  marketing 
or  from  wholesalers  handhng  the  product  of  several  mills.  They 
give  for  the  principal  classes  of  wood  products  the  prices  that 
obtain  for  lumber,  cordwood,  etc.,  designed  for  a  certain  purpose 
irrespective  of  species.  Boston  was  chosen  because  it  is  a  mar- 
ket close  to  the  manufacturing  centers  and  its  prices  represent 
maximum  values.  A  fairer  comparison  of  relative  values  can  be 
secured  in  this  way  than  if  a  market  were  selected  which  is  not 
equally  favorable  to  all  kinds  of  wood. 

WHOLESALE  VALUES  PER  M  FOR  THE  PRINCIPAL  USE  GRADES  OF 
WOOD  PRODUCTS 

Based  on  Boston  prices,  Jan.  i,  1920 

PerM 
Lumber: 

Tropical  cabinet  woods ^250 

Quarter  sawn  oak ^5° 

Clear,  extra  wide  softwood 200 

Native  cabinet  woods  like  black  walnut 200 

Ash  (clear  stock) ^So 

Hickory  (clear  stock) ^  ^S 

Hardwood  finish ^^S 

Hardwood  flooring ^°° 

Softwood  dimension ^ 

Softwood  inch  boards 45 

Boxboards 35 

Shingles 40 

Laths SO 


I70  TIMBER  VALUATION 

Cord  wood : 

Best  hardwood  $i  2  i>er  cord 24 

Softwood  $7.50  per  cord 15 

Poles 50 


Ties. 


30 


Cooperage  (tight  and  slack) 50 

Pulp 20 

Tanbark 10 

The  next  step  is  to  use  these  figures  in  determining  the  values 
per  M  by  species.  Two  considerations  enter  into  this  problem. 
It  is  necessary  to  know  not  only  to  what  uses  each  species  can 
be  put  but  also  what  are  the  best  uses  for  each  part  of  the  tree. 
To  illustrate  the  first  point  the  difference  between  cottonwood  and 
curly  maple  may  be  cited.  The  former  is  wholly  unfit  for  cab- 
inet wood.  A  recent  example,  fresh  in  everyone's  mind,  of  the 
second  point  is  airplane  spruce.  Material  that  will  meet  the 
rigorous  specifications  of  the  airplane  manufacturer  can  only  be 
secured  from  the  butt  logs  of  the  larger  trees.  The  upper  logs 
are  wholly  unfit  for  this  purpose. 

Taking  up  the  use  classes  in  "order,  the  first  may  be  quickly 
disposed  of  because  tropical  cabinet  woods  come  only  from  the 
Philippines  and  to  a  very  limited  extent  frojn  Porto  Rico,  Panama 
and  southern  Florida.  Mahogany  and  Spanish  cedar  are  the 
most  important  species  but  only  a  very  small  proportion  of  the 
whole  tree  reaches  the  market.  While  there  are  no  exact  data 
it  seems  safe  to  say  that  not  more  than  one-third  of  the  whole 
tree  reaches  the  market.  In  the  first  place  only  relatively  clear, 
sound  lumber  can  be  used  while  poor  transportation  facilities 
make  it  desirable  to  leave  in  the  woods  all  non-merchantable 
material.  Consequently  while  the  prices  of  merchantable 
tropical  cabinet  woods  are  high,  the  value  per  M  of  what  would 
be  salable  with  most  tree  species  is  low.  With  one-third  of  the 
tree  reaching  the  market  and  a  value  per  M  of  $150,  the  sale 
value  judged  by  the  ordinary  standards  of  merchantability  is 
reduced  to  $50  per  M.  Quarter  sawn  oak  is  exactly  the  same 
kind  of  a  proposition  —  high  prices  for  a  small  selected  portion 
of  the  whole  merchantable  part  of  the  tree  judged  by  the  stand- 
ards of  merchantibility  applied  to  other  species. 


SALE  VALUES  171 

Extra  wide,  clear  softwood  presents  a  different  problem  for 
while  merely  a  small  percentage  of  the  tree  gives  lumber  which 
can  be  included  in  this  use  class  the  rest  of  the  tree  is  not  wasted. 
As  an  example  of  the  kinds  of  lumber  obtainable,  the  sugar  pine 
figures  of  Larsen's  Bulletin  No.  426  of  the  U.  S.  Forest  Service 
may  be  cited.  Converting  lumber  grades  into  use  classes  gives 
the  following  percentages: 

Per  cent 

Wide  clear  lumber  (firsts  and^seconds) 15 

Sound  lumber  with  small  knots,  "dimension"  or  "shop" 30 

Timber  with  large  knots  only  suitable  for  cutting  up,  "  common  " 
and  "boxboard"  grades 55 


The  only  other  kinds  of  softwoods  which  would  have  as  high  a 
percentage  of  wide,  clear  stock  are  cypress,  virgin  white  pine, 
silver  pine,  yellow  poplar,  and  redwood.  Basswood,  cottonwood,, 
and  yellow  pine  seldom  average  better  than  10  per  cent  while 
Douglas  fir  and  spruce  cannot  be  depended  upon  for  more  than 
5  per  cent. 

Of  the  native  cabinet  woods  black  walnut  stands  in  a  class  by 
itself  but  like  the  tropical  cabinet  woods  only  a  small  proportion 
of  the  tree  is  ordinarily  used.  Fifty  per  cent  would  be  a  generous 
estimate  even  when  the  narrow  strips  used  for  gun  stocks  were  to 
be  cut. 

Ash  and  hickory  are  not  used  for  the  same  purpose  but  their 
utilization  is  similar  in  method.  While  each  possesses  a  special 
field  in  which  it  distances  all  competitors,  only  clear,  sound  stock 
can  be  used.  This  in  turn  means  much  waste  judged  by  the 
ordinary  standards  of  merchantability. 

Hardwood  finish  and  flooring  can  be  conveniently  grouped 
because  they  are  both  made  from  narrow,  clear  lumber.  While 
flooring  is  seldom  over  four  inches  wide  the  maximum  width  for 
No.  I  absolutely  clear  finish  is  six  inches,  so  that  there  is  no  great 
difference  in  this  regard.  Braniff's  figures  in  U.  S.  Forest  Service 
Bulletin  73  furnish  the  best  indication  of  what  may  be  expected 
from  hardwood  timber  as  far  as  high  grade  stock  is  concerned. 
He  found  that  not  more  than  30  per  cent  of  a  lot  of  large,  sound 


172  TIMBER  VALUATION 

logs  would  give  No.  i  and  2  grade  which  may  have  a  limited  num- 
ber of  defects  if  more  than  6  inches  wide.  The  remaining  70  per 
cent  of  the  log  was  only  fit  for  common  lumber  from  which  no  clear 
stuff  was  obtainable  except  in  short  lengths  and  narrow  widths. 
Consequently  finish  and  flooring  do  not  give  close  utilization  or 
high  net  returns. 

Softwood  dimension  lumber  is  really  the  first  group  which 
uses  a  reasonably  large  proportion  of  the  log.  Thirty  per  cent  is 
the  figure  for  sugar  pine  while  species  Uke  Douglas  fir  and  spruce 
which  have  very  little  clear  lumber  naturally  give  larger  percen- 
tages if  "  dimension  "  or  "  shop  "  lumber.  Both  these  grades 
are  essentially  the  same.  Soundness  is  the  desideratum.  If  the 
species  has  stiff  wood  like  spruce,  dimension  is  the  best  use.  If 
it  is  weak  like  pine  it  is  graded  as  "  shop  "  and  cut  up  for  door  or 
sash  stock. 

It  is  not,  however,  until  the  common  inch  board  is  reached  that 
the  greater  part  of  a  log  can  be  thrown  nto  one  use  class.  "  Com- 
mon "  and  "  boxboards  "  are  the  grade  names  for  the  knotty 
lumber  which  comes  from  small  and  top  logs  and  the  inside  of 
large  logs.  Even  in  such  a  large  species  as  sugar  pine  55  per  cent 
of  the  average  log  must  go  into  these  grades.  Small  logs  like 
those  of  second  growth  pine  yield  nothing  else.  Both  hardwood 
and  softwood  "  common  "  lumber  go  mostly  into  boxes  and 
crates. 

Summing  up,  the  grades  of  lumber  which  can  be  obtained  from 
the  average  log  are  as  foUows: 

Per  cent 
Softwood  lumber: 

Clear,  wide  stock 15 

"  Dimension  "  or  "  shop  " 30 

Common  and  boxboards 55 

100 

Per  cent 

Hardwood  lumber: 

Finish  or  flooring 30 

Common  boards 70 

100 


SALE  VALUES  I 73 

Ordinary  sawn  shingles  utilize  the  same  parts  of  a  tree  that 
lumber  does.  The  only  difference  is  that  a  higher  per  cent  is 
manufactured  than  with  square  edge  lumber  because  there  is 
less  waste  in  slabs  and  edgings.  Shingles  sell  for  $25  to  $35  per 
M  board  feet,  log  scale. 

Laths  furnish  the  only  outlet  for  the  sale  of  the  slabs  and  edg- 
ings in  the  ordinary  sawmill  and  even  they  cannot  be  manu- 
factured at  a  profit  where  there  is  a  long  freight  haul  to  market. 
Reduced  to  board  feet  laths  sell  for  about  $20  per  M  (1920). 

So  far  only  that  30  to  50  per  cent  of  the  sohd  cubic  contents  of 
the  tree  has  been  considered  which  is  in  the  bole. 

Little  attention  need  be  paid  the  stump  because  it  is  only  rarely 
merchantable  and  then  at  a  low  figure.  This  does  not,  however, 
apply  in  the  case  of  the  Hmbs  which  may  he  made  to  yield  much 
valuable  pulpwood,  extract  wood  or  firewood.  All  tree  species 
may  be  cut  for  the  latter  purpose  but  there  is  a  wide  difference  in 
their  fuel  value.  A  cord  of  pine  will  not  give  more  than  half  the 
heat  that  a  cord  of  hickory  wall.  Distance  to  market  is  the  con- 
trolling factor,  however,  since  cordwood  is  bulky,  heavy  material 
which  is  not  valuable  enough  to  repay  shipping  far.  In  the 
ordinary  logging  job  it  must  be  left  in  the  woods.  But  where  the 
haul  is  not  too  great  the  cordwood  may  add  $1  to  $5  to  the  profit 
on  each  thousand  feet  of  lumber. 

Similar  returns  may  be  expected  from  pulpwood,  extract  wood 
and  wood  alcohol  in  favorable  localities.  Yellow  poplar  is  the 
most  commonly  used  hmb  wood  for  the  former  while  chestnut  is 
the  only  species  widely  used  for  extract  wood.  Beech,  birch  and 
maple  are  most  sought  in  the  manufacture  of  wood  alcohol. 

Poles  are  one  of  the  few  uses  which  utilize  a  high  per  cent  of  the 
tree.  In  addition  to  aU  that  could  be  turned  into  lumber  much 
that  w^ould  otherwise  be  only  fit  for  cordwood  is  taken.  Unfor- 
tunately, relatively  few  species  have  sufficient  durability  in  con- 
tact with  the  ground  to  be  suitable  for  this  purpose.  Hence, 
90  per  cent  of  all  poles  used  in  the  United  States  are  either  cedar, 
chestnut  or  oak. 

Railway  ties  also  make  use  of  parts  of  the  tree  that  are  ordi- 
narily considered  too  coarse  for  lumber  so  that  the  utilization  is 


174  TIMBER   VALUATION 

midway  between  that  of  lumber  alone  and  lumber  and  cordwood 
combined.  Durability  is  of  the  first  importance  here  as  with 
poles  while  hardness  is  scarcely  less  important.  The  species 
commonly  used  for  poles  are  also  those  most  sought  for  railway 
ties 

For  tight  staves  only  a  few  species  are  suitable  and  oak,  white 
and  red,  is  the  most  desirable.  In  fact  more  than  four  fifths  of 
all  tight  staves  are  of  oak  while  whiskey  and  beer  casks  are  made 
from  white  oak  only.  Moreover,  these  uses  demand  clear  lum- 
ber so  that  they  are  not  close  in  their  utilization.  Slack  staves, 
on  the  other  hand,  can  be  made  from  medium  grade  lumber  from 
a  number  of  species  and  from  small  logs  so  that  they  utilize  about 
60  per  cent  of  the  total  cubic  contents  of  the  average  tree. 

Summarizing  the  utilization  obtainable  with  the  various  uses 
referred  to  above  gives  the  following  figures : 

Per  cent  of  the 
whole  tree 

Clear  wide  softwood 5  to  10 

Clear  hardwood 15 

Dimension  or  shop  lumber 15 

Common  boards 35 

Shingles 60 

Laths 10 

Cordwood 20  to  80 

Poles 70 

Ties 20  to  70 

Cooperage,  tight 15 

Pulp 20  to  80 

Tanbark  (usually  in  addition  to  other  uses) 

Having  discussed  the  sale  values  of  the  various  kinds  of  wood 
products  and  the  per  cent  of  each  which  can  be  obtained  from  the 
different  commercial  tree  species,  the  two  may  be  combined  to 
give  average  sale  values  per  M  for  each  species.  These  differ 
from  the  Forest  Service  log  run  average  prices  f.o.b.  mill  in  two 
important  respects.  In  the  first  place,  the  table  given  below 
takes  into  consideration  the  use  of  wood  for  other  purposes  than 
lumber.  Tops  and  bark  are  included  wherever  merchantable. 
Secondly,  the  values  are  wholesale  prices  in  a  recognized  market, 
not  values  f.o.b.  the  producing  point  to  which  uncertain  freight 


SALE   VALUES  175 

rates  must  be  added  to  make  it  possible  to  compare  them  intel- 
ligently. The  Forest  Service  figures  were,  of  course,  used  as  a 
check. 

Two  objections  may  be  vaKdly  made  against  these  figures. 
They  are,  in  the  first  place,  merely  for  one  market.  Other  mar- 
kets may  vary  greatly  in  their  prices  for  a  given  product.  While 
it  is  obviously  impossible  to  deny  this  criticism,  it  is  equally  out 
of  the  question  to  correct  it  by  giving  in  the  limited  space 
available  data  for  all  the  wood  markets.  Even  a  selection  of  the 
most  important  would  be  difficult  to  decide  upon  and  not  espe- 
cially helpful.  The  prime  use  of  the  figures  is  for  purposes  of 
comparison.  No  work  of  this  kind  could  be  expected  to  be  revised 
frequently  enough  to  keep  up  to  date  with  daily  market  changes. 
The  second  objection  is  that  the  values  given  are  more  nearly 
maximum  than  average.  Minimum  prices  would  be  of  no  use 
because  there  is  no  lower  limit  beyond  which  the  necessities  of  a 
seller  may  not  force  him.  If  he  must  sell  current  market  quota- 
tions merely  represent  an  unattainable  maximum.  Since  there 
is,  therefore,  no  absolute  minimum  maximum  prices  are  the  only 
ones  that  can  be  secured  in  sufficient  abundance  to  prevent  gross 
errors.  They  are  the  prices  sellers  like  to  give  out.  They  are 
published  in  all  trade  journals  while  figures  of  actual  transactions 
are  guarded  jealously. 

Much  the  same  conditions  prevail  in  the  choice  of  uses  to  which 
wood  may  be  put.  High  grade  mahogany  is  frequently  used  in 
the  tropics  for  firewood  or  railway  ties,  but  such  uses  do  not 
interest  the  woodland  owner.  He  wants  to  know  how  he  may 
get  the  most  out  of  his  timber.  Therefore,  it  has  been  assumed  in 
figuring  the  average  values  that  each  part  of  the  tree  is  put  to  its 
highest  use. 

The  tree  species  which  have  been  discussed  so  far  fall  into  three 
groups  when  arranged  according  to  their  values  per  M  with  all 
parts  of  the  tree  included.  This  grouping  may  appear  strange 
at  the  first  glance  unless  it  is  remembered  that  all  the  mer- 
chantable parts  of  a  tree  are  considered,  tops  and  bark  as  well  as 
those  portions  which  will  make  lumber.  The  unportance  of  such 
figures  is  easily  apparent  to  the  woodland  owner  who  plans  on 


176  riMBER   VALUATION 

producing  continuous  crops  of  timber.  What  he  wants  to  know 
is  what  will  bring  him  the  most  per  acre.  In  other  words,  his 
point  of  view  is  different  from  that  of  the  lumberman  who  thinks 
only  in  terms  of  logs.  In  fact  the  acreage,  and  not  the  log,  basis 
seems  the  reasonable  attitude  for  all  timberland  owners  to  take 
irrespective  of  whether  they  are  going  to  raise  continuous  crops, 
in  purchasing  or  operating  a  tract  the  owner  is  anxious  to  get  a 
large  net  yield  per  unit  area  irrespective  of  whether  it  comes  from 
choice  logs  or  branchwood.  Like  the  meat  packer  the  timber- 
owner  can  no  longer  afford  to  neglect  his  by-products. 
Wholesale  values  per  M  feet  board  measure  in  timber  and 
supplementary  products  at  mill,  January  i,  1920. 

Group  I.   Values  of  $50  per  M  and  more. 

A.  Cabinet  and  furniture  woods  with  merchantable  tops. 

Yellow  poplar,  walnut,  white  and  red  oak,  maple, 
birch,  and  black  cherry. 

B.  Wide,  clear  softwoods,  tops  not  merchantable. 

Virgin  white  pine,  silver  pine,  sugar  pine,  and  red- 
wood. 

C.  Softwood  valuable  for  interior  finish  and  dimension 

stock,  tops  usually  merchantable. 
Southern  yellow  pine, 

D.  Special  hardwoods,  tops  merchantable. 

Ash  and  hickory. 

Group  II.   Values  of  $40  per  M  and  more. 

A .  Second  grade  hardwoods,  tops  usually  not  merchant- 

able. 
Chestnut,  black  oak,  basswood,  red  gum,  cotton- 
wood  and  tupelo,  beech. 

B.  Softwoods  mostly  used  for  dimension  timber. 

Cypress,  western  yellow  pine,  western  larch,  spruce, 
and  Douglas  fir. 

C.  Shingle  woods. 

White  cedar  and  western  red  cedar. 

D.  Pencil  and  chest  wood  —  eastern  red  cedar. 


SALE  VALUES  1 77 

Group  III.   Values  of  $25  per  M  and  more 

A.  Low  grade  softwoods. 

Hemlock  and  balsam. 

B.  Tropical  hardwoods. 

Mahogany,  ebony,  etc. 

With  this  table  of  values  for  the  individual  species  and  figures 
for  stand  per  acre  for  each  type  it  is  possible  to  figure  comparative 
gross  values  per  acre  by  types.  As  with  the  other  tables  of  the 
same  kmd  the  absolute  values  per  acre  are  not  as  useful  as  a  com- 
parison of  the  values.  To  bring  out  more  clearly  this  essential 
feature,  the  relative  returns  which  can  reasonably  be  expected, 
the  types  are  arranged  in  descending  order. 

GROSS  RETURNS   PER   ACRE  OF  THE  FOREST  TYPES  IN  TPIE 

UNITED   STATES  AND   ITS  POSSESSIONS 

Per  acre 

Douglas  fir $240x5 

Virgin  white  pine 2250 

Hemlock-spruce  (Alaska) 1800 

Cove  (Appalachian  Mts.) 1800 

Bottomlands 1800 

Redwood 1575 

Silver  pine 1350 

Spruce,  northern 1000 

Northern  hardwoods 1000 

Slope  (Appalachian  Mts.) looo 

Southern  pine 1000 

Second  growth  white  pine 800 

Engelmann  spruce 800 

Lodgepole  pine 600 

Northern  swamp ••*. 400 

Wet  hardwoods 375 

Western  yellow  pine 315 

Sugar  pine 315 

Ridge  (Appalachian  Mts.) 225 

Spruce-birch 200 

Drj'  hardwoods 75 

No  discussion  of  sale  values  is  complete  without  some  reference 
to  the  future  trend  of  prices.  In  this  field  of  prophecy  absolute 
accuracy  is,  of  course,  out  of  the  question  but  an  examination  of 
the  past  history  of  wood  prices  should  give  a  sound  basis  for  pre- 


1 78  TIMBER   VALUATION 

dieting  the  probable  trend.  On  account  of  the  lack  of  data  for 
other  products,  attention  will  be  wholly  confined  to  lumber  prices. 
Fig.  2  shows  graphically  the  course  of  prices  from  i860  to  1918 
in  the  United  States.  These  were  prepared  in  the  main  by 
Compton  by  computing  the  average  prices  of  the  important 
grades  and  species  of  lumber  and  weighting  the  various  species. 
"Organization  of  the  Lumber  Industry,"  Wilson  Compton,  1916. 
The  figures  for  191 5  to  191 8  were  secured  from  the  War  Industries 
report  on  Prices  of  Lumber  by  R.  C.  Bryant.  The  following 
species  are  included: 

1 860-1 86 5  White  pine,  spruce,  oak  and  hemlock. 

1865-1887  Southern  pine  added. 

1 88 7-1 896  Douglas  fir  and  redwood  added. 

1896-1910  North  CaroUna  pine  and  cypress  added. 

1910-1912  Maple  added, 

1912-1914  Yellow  poplar  and  western  red  cedar  added. 

1914-1918  Eastern  v/hite  pine,  eastern  hemlock,  spruce, 
southern  yellow  pine,  plain  oak,  Douglas  fir, 
hard  maple,  gum,  chestnut,  birch,  yellow  pop- 
lar, ash  and  hickory. 

The  base  price,  100,  is  the  average  price  for  the  36  months, 
1 901-1903.  Relative  prices  are  used  rather  than  absolute  prices 
to  ehminate  possible  errors  in  quotations.  In  many  cases  it  is 
difficult  if  not  impossible  to  determine  the  exact  sale  value  of  any 
particular  grade  so  that  the  trade  journals  from  which  the  data  for 
the  curve  has  been  obtained  are  Uable  to  make  minor  errors  in 
this  way. 

While  the  curve  shows  a  general  upward  tendency  there  are 
many  small  depressions  and  two  periods  during  which  lumber 
went  back  to  prices  nearly  as  low  as  those  obtained  before  the 
Civil  War.  The  first  of  these,  from  1875  to  1880,  marked  the 
opening  up  of  the  Lake  States  region.  Prior  to  that  the  indus- 
tries of  the  country  had  depended  mainly  upon  lumber  cut  in 
New  England,  New  York,  and  Pennsylvania.  But  the  depletion 
of  these  sources  of  supply  was  offset  in  large  measure  by  the 
development  of  railroad  transporation  from  the  Lake  States  to 


SALE  V.-y.UES 


179 


the  Atlantic  seaboard.     This  made  it  possible  to  market  cheaply 
the  splendid  white  pine  of  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  and  Minnesota 


'100 


sxivMonix 


'40 


1860  1870  1880  1890  1900  1910  1920 

Fig.  13.     The  Cost  of  Living  and  Lumber  Prices  1860-1920 

SO  rapidly  that  the  market  was  glutted.  From  the  bottom  of  tliis 
depression  in  1879  there  was  a  gradual  rise  until  1883  as  it  became 
more  and  more  apparent  that  the  Lake  States  white  pine  was  not 
inexhaustible.  In  fact  the  increasing  cost  of  buying  and  logging 
led  to  the  development  of  the  southern  pine  region  which  in  turn 


l8o  TIMBER   VALUATION 

flooded  the  market  with  lumber  brought  and  logged  so  cheaply 
that  it  could  compete  successfully  with  that  from  the  northeast 
and  Lake  States  in  spite  of  higher  freight  rates.  Then  the  price 
went  down  again.  Another  low  level  was  reached  in  1896.  The 
Spanish  War  in  1898  upset  the  usual  course  of  prices  somewhat 
but  history  bade  fair  to  repeat  itself  as  the  northwest  began  to 
supplant  the  southeast  as  the  principal  lumber  producing  center. 
There  was  in  fact  a  decided  drop  in  lumber  prices  after  1907. 
This  followed  the  tremendous  expansion  in  the  northwest  and 
was  largely  the  direct  result  of  the  attempt  to  market  lumber  too 
rapidly  in  order  to  meet  carrying  charges  on  mill  equipment  and 
stumpage.  By  191 2  a  slow  recovery  had  been  made  followed  by 
a  depression  which  reached  its  lowest  point  in  19 14  when  lumber 
prices  were  back  at  the  1905  level. 

The  effect  of  the  Great  War  was  almost  immediate.  Prices 
commenced  to  advance  even  before  the  United  States  declared 
war  against  Germany  in  spite  of  the  impossibility  of  shipping 
lumber  abroad  with  the  submarine  campaign  in  full  swing.  The 
demand  from  American  manufacturers  busy  with  war  orders  was, 
however,  sufficient  to  absorb  all  the  lumber  that  was  not  needed 
for  ordinary  business. 

With  the  addition  of  the  United  States  to  the  belligerents  a 
new  set  of  factors  influenced  lumber  prices.  It  was  immediately 
evident  that  the  Government  would  need  large  suppHes  of  lumber 
in  the  raw  form  for  ships,  warehouses,  and  cantonments  and  also 
indirectly  for  such  manufactured  articles  as  wagons,  airplanes, 
gunstocks  and  boxes;  hence,  the  necessity  for  centralized  control 
of  prices.  This  was  effected  by  cooperation  between  the  Govern- 
ment and  the  lumber  industry  and  took  the  following  forms: 

1.  Standardizing  and  centralizing. 

Government  purchases. 

2.  Price  fixing. 

3.  Restriction  in  use  for  non-essential  purposes. 

4.  Restrictions  on  imports  and  exports. 

Obviously  the  first  thing  to  do  where  the  Government  was  in  the 
market  for  large  amounts  of  lumber  was  to  standardize  the  re- 


SALE   VALUES  l8l 

quirements  of  the  different  departments  so  that  the  utmost 
economy  could  be  practiced  in  meeting  their  specifications. 
There  was  no  reason,  for  example,  why  the  War  Department 
should  have  a  different  requirement  for  ammunition  box  material 
from  that  enforced  by  the  Navy.  Furthermore,  it  was  equally 
apparent  that  these  and  other  Departments  should  be  kept  from 
bidding  against  each  other.  Great  economies  in  money  and  time 
were  effected  in  this  way. 

But  it  was  soon  clear  that  the  Govenment  needs  were  so  great 
that  some  control  of  prices  was  necessary.  Thru  a  subcommittee 
of  the  Raw  Materials  Division  of  the  Council  of  National  Defense 
emergency  bureaus  were  established  in  the  principal  lumber  pro- 
ducing centers.  Besides  acting  as  a  distributing  agency  in  plac- 
ing government  orders  these  bureaus  aided  materially  in  furnish- 
ing data  upon  which  to  fix  reasonable  prices.  The  aim  was  to  set 
values  which  would  ensure  rapid  and  continuous  production  with- 
out disproportionate  cost  to  the  Government.  To  reach  such  a 
decision  naturally  entailed  much  research  into  actual  costs  of  pro- 
duction and  a  thoro  knowledge  of  marketing  methods. 

The  elimination  of  non-essential  industries  was  accomphshed 
in  various  ways.  Appeals  to  the  patriotism  of  both  producers 
and  consumers  did  much.  Actual  division  of  raw  material  was 
also  an  active  force  in  curtailment.  But  by  far  the  most  effec- 
tive agency  in  securing  this  end  was  the  drafting  of  employees 
from  such  industries  while  those  in  the  so-called  "  essential  indus- 
tries "  were  exempt  from  the  draft.  Restrictions  on  imports 
still  further  curtailed  the  supply  of  raw  material  for  the  manufac- 
tures that  did  not  contribute  directly  to  the  winning  of  the  War 
while  demand  for  their  products  was  restricted  by  refusing  export 
licenses.  But  in  spite  of  the  large  measure  of  cooperation  be- 
tween the  Government  and  the  lumbermen  who  were  patriotic 
it  was  necessary  to  markedly  increase  prices  to  keep  up  production 
to  a  satisfactory  basis.  Between  1914  and  the  signing  of  the 
Armistice  average  lumber  prices  rose  approximately  90  per  cent. 
The  major  portion  of  this  rise  took  place  during  191 7  and  1918 
when  the  United  States  was  a  belligerent.  Lest,  however,  it 
should  be  assumed  that  this  was  a  disproportionate  rise  it  should 


l82  TIMBER    VALUATION 

be  remembered  that  most  articles  necessary  to  the  prosecution 
of  the  War  rose  even  more  rapidly  than  lumber.  Balson  (Eco- 
nomics of  the  Lumber  Industry,  U.  S.  Department  of  Labor,  1919) 
found,  for  example,  that  more  lumber  could  be  bought  with  a 
dollar  in  1919  than  farm  products  as  compared  with  1914.  Farm 
products  advanced  during  the  War  so  tlxat  a  dollar  would  only 
buy  46  cents'worth  while  58  cents'  worth  of  lumber  could  be  pur- 
chased for  the  same  amount. 

In  fact  the  slowness  with  which  lumber  advanced  during  the 
War  was  one  of  the  reasons  why  there  was  an  advance  immedi- 
ately after  the  removal  of  war  restrictions.  Other  factors  which 
gave  impetus  to  this  upward  tendency  were  subnormal  supplies 
of  logs,  no  surplus  of  lumber  at  the  mills,  short  stocks  of  lumber 
in  the  retail  yards,  and  inability  of  the  railroads  to  handle  ship- 
ments rapidly  with  depreciated  rolling  stock  and  inefficient  labor. 
Although  the  country  had  responded  nobly  to  all  war  demands 
it  must  be  remembered  that  all  efforts  had  been  concentrated  on 
the  production  of  war  material.  Other  supplies  were  neglected. 
Repairs  on  buildings  were  postponed.  Every  energy  was  directed 
with  feverish  intensity  toward  the  German  overthrow.  The 
reaction  after  the  Armistice  was  sudden  and  complete.  It  was 
only  slowly  that  the  routine  of  peace  was  resumed.  But  lum- 
ber was  in  great  demand  almost  immediately  to  meet  the  need  for 
accumulated  repairs  and  to  make  up  for  the  home  building  which 
had  been  abandoned  during  the  War.  This  demand  found  all 
departments  of  the  lumber  business  short  on  raw  material  with 
employees  loathe  to  turn  at  once  from  fighting  Germans  to  felling 
trees.  Added  to  our  own  needs  were  those  of  our  Allies.  France 
and  Belgium  were  in  especial  need  of  lumber  for  reconstruction 
and  drew  on  us  for  hardwoods  in  large  quantities.  The  price 
of  oak  and  ash  jumped  at  once,  with  other  hardwoods  following 
sympathetically.  To  show  the  exact  effect  of  this  in  a  few  con- 
crete cases  take  oak,  ash  and  maple  in  the  Boston  wholesale  mar- 
ket. Below  are  given  the  prices  per  M  at  the  end  of  1915,  1918, 
and  1919  with  the  rise  in  per  cent  for  each  year  after  191 5: 


SALE    VALUES 


183 


Plain  white  oak 

Maple 

Ash 

S60 
80-33  i% 
i6<^i66% 

S40 

70-  75% 

116-190% 

115-109% 
150-172% 

I9I8  

There  has  not  been,  however,  any  such  marked  advance  in  the 
average  price  of  lumber.  The  hardwoods  make  up  only  about 
25  per  cent  of  the  total  lumber  cut.  The  advance  in  softwoods 
has  been  much  less  on  the  whole.  Spruce  frames,  one  of  the 
most  used  grades  of  eastern  lumber,  increased  116  per  cent.  To 
get  a  true  notion  of  how  this  compares  with  other  prices  it  should 
be  compared  with  advances  of  92  per  cent  in  food  and  135  per 
cent  in  clothing  (National  Industrial  Conference  Board  Report, 
1920). 

To  sum  up  the  situation  at  the  beginning  of  1920,  lumber  was 
in  great  demand  with  stocks  low,  labor  in  the  woods  and  saw- 
mills subnormal  and  distribution  hampered  by  railroad  deprecia- 
tion. What  are  the  prospects  in  the  future?  The  factors  that 
tend  to  keep  prices  up  are  as  follows: 

Low  stocks  at  the  mills  and  retail  yards. 

Shortage  of  dwelKng  houses. 

Accumulated  repair  work. 

Depreciated  rolling  stock  and  lowered  efficiency  of  railways 

which  prevent  normal  delivery. 
Demand  from  Europe  for  reconstruction  material. 
Diminishing  supply  of  accessible  stumpage. 
General  inflation  of  currency. 
Low  productivity  of  labor. 

Over  against  these  influences  are  such  depressing  factors  as : 

Increasing  substitution. 

Decrease  of  exports  on  account  of  unfavorable  exchange 
rates  and  rehabilitation  of  lumber  business  in  Russia  and 
Austria. 

Development  of  waterways  to  relieve  the  strain  on  the  rail- 
roads. 


l84  TIMBER   VALUATION 

Economic  pressure  on  timberland  holders  to  meet  carrying 

charges  by  cutting  even  at  a  low  profit. 
Increased  productivity  of  labor. 
Deflation  of  currency. 

Striking  a  balance  between  these  two  sets  of  factors  is  difficult. 
It  involves  forecasting  the  probable  course  of  prices  after  the 
greatest  war  in  history  with  the  world  facing  a  timber  famine 
due  to  overcutting  in  the  past.  Stumpage  prices  seem  bound  to 
go  up.  The  cost  of  production  in  Europe  is  $io  to  $15  per  M 
for  softwoods  and  $20  to  $30  for  hardwoods.  These  seem  to  be 
what  the  United  States  will  have  to  come  to.  The  softwood 
stumpage  prices  have  already  been  attained  in  the  northeast. 
Lumber  prices  are  a  different  problem.  They  need  not  neces- 
sarily go  up  along  with  stumpage  prices.  In  fact  European  pre- 
war prices  would  indicate  that  increased  efiiciency  of  manufac- 
ture and  distribution  may  keep  them  from  going  much  higher 
than  they  are  now.  Certainly  there  is  every  prospect  of  a  tem- 
porary falling  off  when  the  peak  of  general  commodity  prices  is 
reached.  Eut  on  the  other  hand  the  times  are  apparently  past 
when  softwood  lumber  of  even  medium  grade  can  be  purchased 
for  less  than  $50  per  M  or  clear  hardwood  for  less  than  $100. 

Logging  Costs  for  Lumber.  —  The  difficult  and  complex  sub- 
ject of  logging  and  miUing  costs  must  necessarily  be  considered 
briefly,  at  least,  because  a  knowledge  of  stumpage  prices  is  a 
prime  essential  in  determining  timber  values.  Stumpage  prices 
in  turn  are  dependent  upon  the  difference  between  sale  values  and 
costs.  Needless  to  say  the  subject  is  so  complex  that  a  full  dis- 
cussion of  the  various  phases  must  be  left  to  such  special  treatises 
as  Bryant's  "  Logging."  What  is  needed  here  is  merely  a  bird's- 
eye  view  and  a  comparative  notion  of  costs  under  different  topo- 
graphic and  forest  type  conditions. 

Since  lumber  is  the  most  important  single  product  of  the  forest 
its  manufacture  mil  be  considered  in  detail.  For  other  products 
like  cord  wood,  tanbark,  poles,  etc.,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  merely 
point  out  the  ways  in  which  their  handling  differs  from  that  of 
lumber. 


LOGGING   COSTS  FOR   LUMBER  185 

Briefly,  then,  all  lumber  goes  thru  the  following  lour  steps  in 
passing  from  tree  form  to  finished  board  : 

1.  Felling  and  bucking. 

2.  Skidding. 

3.  Hauling  or  driving. 

4.  Milling,  including  seasoning. 

In  some  operations  numbers  two  and  three  are  combined  as, 
for  example,  in  the  New  England  portable  sawmill  type  of  logging 
but  these  four  steps  are  in  general  typical  of  the  average  logging 
operation  the  country  over. 

FelUng  and  bucking  are  commonly  considered  together  because 
it  is  usual  to  have  the  same  crew  do  both,  tho  here,  again,  usage 
varies  in  the  different  parts  of  the  country.  The  simplest  form 
is  a  two-man  crew  who  notch,  fell,  buck,  bump,  and  pile  brush  all 
as  one  operation  and  their  methods  will  exempHfy  the  principles. 
The  first  step  in  felhng  a  tree  is  notching  it  so  that  it  will  fall 
where  it  will  do  the  least  damage  to  itself  and  the  young  timber  to 
be  left  standing.  Since  this  is  an  operation  which  demands  con- 
siderable skill  and  judgment  it  is  usually  done  by  the  more 
experienced  member  of  the  crew.  It  is  not,  however,  a  task  which 
takes  much  time.  Ordinarily  10  to  15  per  cent  of  the  total  time 
per  M  is  used.  The  actual  sawing  off  from  the  stump  after  the 
tree  has  been  notched  with  an  axe  takes  double  the  time.  But 
what  determines  the  cost  per  M  more  than  any  other  item  is  the 
time  required  to  saw  the  felled  tree  into  logs  or  "  bucking."  This 
usually  requires  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  time  and  explains 
why  the  cost  of  feUing  and  bucking  varies  directly  with  the  size 
of  the  timber.  In  other  words,  the  larger  the  trees  the  less  the 
cost  per  M.  To  illustrate  this  by  examples  at  the  two  extremes, 
the  cost  of  this  step  on  the  Pacific  Coast  in  the  heavy  stands  of 
redwood  and  Douglas  fir  has  been  50  cents  per  M  while  in  the 
second  growth  stands  of  New  England  the  usual  contract  price  was 
$1.50  per  M  before  the  War.  Expressed  in  man  hours  the  costs 
are  one  and  one-half  and  three  man  hours  per  M  respectively,  or 
expressed  in  another  way,  two  men  in  the  Douglas  fir  region  will 
fell  and  buck  10  M  in  a  day  as  against  four  to  five  M  in  the  north- 
east 


l86  TIMBER   VALUATION 

Brush  disposal  so  as  to  reduce  the  fire  hazard  and  prevent 
smothering  volunteer  young  growth  is  not  a  universal  practice 
but  it  requires  in  softwoods  not  more  than  20  per  cent  of  the  total 
time. 

There  is  a  vast  deal  of  difference  between  the  cost  of  felling 
hardwoods  and  softwoods.  The  latter  cut  very  much  more 
rapidly.  Hardwoods  may,  in  fact,  require  three  times  as  long 
in  small  logs.  Ashe  states  (Cost  of  Logging  Large  and  Small 
Timber,  Forestry  Quarterly,  XIV-3)  that  "  the  cost  of  felling  oak, 
with  which  are  included  birch,  beech,  maple,  and  other  species  of 
heavy  wood,  is  shown  to  be  about  20  per  cent  greater  than  the 
cost  of  felhng  the  lighter  and  softer  woods  such  as  white  pine, 
yellow  pine,  poplar  and  basswood."  This  refers  to  relatively 
large  timber. 

Applying  the  facts  brought  out  here  to  forest  types  they  fall 
into  several  groups.     In  the  first  are  the  large  softwoods  like: 

Redwood  and  sequoia. 
Sugar  pine. 
Douglas  fir. 
Western  red  cedar. 

With  these  tne  cost  of  felling  and  bucking  has  always  been  less 
than  $1  per  M,  i.e.,  the  daily  output  for  two  men  would  exceed 
8M  or  in  man  hours  the  cost  per  M  ranges  from  one  and  one-half 
to  two.  The  second  group  includes  the  medium  sized  softwoods 
such  as  are  found  in  the: 

Silver  pine  type. 
Western  yellow  pine  type. 
Hemlock  spruce  type. 
Yellow  poplar  cove. 
Cypress  bottoms. 

In  these  stands  the  costs  have  ranged  from  $1  to  $1.25  per  M  or 
two  to  three  man  hours  per  M.  This  would  reduce  the  daily 
output  for  a  two  man  crew  to  an  average  of  eight  M. 


LOGGING    COSTS   FOR   LUMBER  187 

The  small  softwoods,  like 
Eastern  spruce, 


Engelmann  spruce, 

Lodgepole  pine, 

Alaskan  spruce, 

White  cedar, 

Second  growth  white  pine, 


require  so  much  bucking  to  get  a  M  feet  of  logs  that  the  average 
cost  has  been  $1 .50  per  M  or  three  to  four  man  hours  per  M  giving 
an  output  of  about  five  M  per  day.  The  hardwoods  —  north 
and  south  —  make  up  the  last  group  \vith  costs  ranging  before 
the  War  from  $1.50  to  $2.50  depending  upon  the  size  of  the  trees. 
This  means  that  two  men  can  only  cut  three  to  four  M  per  day 
and  that  the  cost  in  man  hours  is  not  less  than  five. 

The  operation  of  gathering  together  the  felled  and  sawn  logs 
so  that  they  may  be  economically  transported  to  the  sa\vmill  is 
variously  known  as  skidding  or  yarding.  In  northern  New 
England  "  yarding  "  includes  feUing  and  bucking  as  well  as  skid- 
ding. "  Skooting  "  is  the  term  applied  to  this  operation  in  the 
northeastern  portable  sawmill  region  but  it  is  combined  with  the 
next  step,  hauling,  for  the  reason  that  the  stands  are  so  heavy 
and  the  distances  to  the  mill  so  short  that  it  does  not  pay  to 
bunch  the  logs  before  hauling  them. 

Various  methods  of  skidding  are  employed.  The  simplest  is 
with  a  single  horse.  One  end  of  the  log  is  made  fast  to  and  the 
horse  simply  pulls  it  out  to  the  yard  or  skidway  where  a  pile  is 
built  up  in  such  a  way  that  the  logs  can  be  rolled  onto  the  wagon 
or  sled  handily.  Large  logs  require  two  or  more  horses.  In  the 
early  days  before  the  advent  of  steam  skidders  several  pairs  of 
oxen  were  required  to  haul  the  large  logs  of  the  northwest,  but 
this  method  was  quickly  replaced  by  steam  when  the  power 
skidder  evolved  to  the  point  of  practicable  operation.  Now  it  is 
used  in  all  operations  where  the  logs  are  large  and  the  stands 
heavy.  Naturally,  however,  it  requires  a  large  initial  invest- 
ment and  cannot  be  applied  except  where  the  stands  are  dense 
enough  per  acre  to  justify  such  an  expenditure. 


l88  TIMBER   VALUATION 

The  main  factor  in  determining  the  cost  of  skidding  is  the 
distance  skidded.  This  in  turn  depends  upon  the  stand  per  acre 
because  it  is  naturally  easier  to  get  a  reasonable  sized  pile  where 
the  stand  is  heavy  than  where  the  stand  is  thin  and  the  logs  have 
to  be  hauled  long  distances.  Second  in  importance  to  the  time 
required  to  skid  the  log  is  the  time  taken  on  the  return  trip.  This 
may  exceed  the  time  consumed  on  the  way  to  the  skidway  when 
logs  are  hauled  off  a  steep  hillside  where  the  horses  have  to  toil 
slowly  back  up  again.  Fastening  onto  the  log  and  unfastening 
are  items  of  minor  importance. 

Since  then  the  factors  which  determine  the  cost  of  skidding  are 
primarily  the  time  consumed  going  and  coming  the  lowest  costs 
must  be  where  these  times  make  up  the  smallest  per  cent  of  the 
total  time.  Heavy  stands  of  large  logs  are  the  first  prerequisite 
and  fast  motive  power  the  second.  Consequently  the  types  in 
which  the  lowest  cost  of  skidding  is  found  are  the  dense  stands  of 
conifers  —  redwood,  Douglas  fir,  western  red  cedar  —  in  the 
Pacific  northwest  and  the  cypress  of  the  southern  bottomlands 
where  steam  skidders  are  used.  Costs  have  run  in  such  stands 
from  50  cents  to  $2  per  M. 

With  the  other  softwoods  $2  per  M  has  been  the  standard 
price.  Even  variation  in  the  number  of  logs  per  M  and  different 
methods,  bare  ground,  bobsleds,  skoots,  or  big  wheels,  have  pro- 
duced little  deviation. 

Hardwoods  on  the  other  hand  cost  considerably  more.  They 
are  heavier  and  more  crooked.  Costs  have  ranged  from  $2.50  to 
$3.50  per  M. 

Summarizing  skidding  costs,  the  forest  types  fall  into  three 
main  groups  as  follows: 

I.  Costs  ranging  from  50  cents  to  $2  per  M  or  about  three  man 
hours  per  M  plus  interest  and  depreciation  charges  on  the 
machinery. 

Steam  skidders  used.     Large  logs.     Soft,  light  woods. 
Redwood. 
Douglas  fir. 
Western  red  cedar. 
Sugar  pine. 


LOGGING  COSTS   FOR  LUMBER  189 

Cypress. 

Southern  pine  (to  some  extent). 
Hemlock-spruce. 
II.   Costs  ranging  from  $1.50  to  $2.50  per  M  or  three  to  four 
man  hours  and  four  to  five  horse  hours  per  M. 

Various  methods  employed.     Medium  sized  logs.     Soft,  light 
woods. 

Southern  pine. 
Virgin  white  pine. 
Western  yeUow  pine. 
Silver  pine. 
Yellow  poplar  cove. 
Hemlock. 

Eastern  and  western  spruce. 
Lodgepole  pine. 
Second  growth  white  pine. 
in.   Costs  ranging  from  $2.50  to  $3.50  per  M  or  four  and  one- 
half  to  five  man  hours  and  six  horse  hours  per  M. 
Various  methods  employed.     Hard,  heavy  woods. 
Northern  hardwoods. 
Southern  hardwoods. 
Tropical  hardwoods. 
The  third  step  in  the  typical  lumbering  operation,  hauling,  is 
similar  in  principle  to  skidding.     The  time  going  and  coming  is 
what  determines  the  cost.     But  naturally,  since  distances  rang- 
ing from  I  mile  to  20  are  involved  greater  care  is  taken  to  pro- 
vide an  easy  running  conveyance  and  a  smooth  hauling  surface. 
The  simplest  and  cheapest  method  of  log  transport  is  driving. 
Starting  from  the  mere  rolling  of  logs  into  a  deep  channel  it  has 
developed  into  a  highly  specialized  business  with  elaborate  sets  of 
reservoirs,  splash  dams,  channel  improvements,  bank  reinforce- 
ments, miles  of  booms  and  various  ways  of  rafting  across  still 
water.     Comparatively    small    streams    are    now    successfully 
driven.     A  standard  figure  in  the  northeast  where  the  conditions 
have  been  very  favorable  for  the  development  of  this  method  has 
long  been  a  cent  a  mile  per  M  board  feet.     With  such  a  low  charge 


IQO  TIMBER   VALUATION 

no  Other  method  can  compete.  Unfortunately,  however,  driving 
cannot  be  employed  everywhere.  It  is  first  of  all  necessary  that 
the  timber  to  be  taken  out  will  float  readily.  This  most  hard- 
woods will  not  do  and  even  some  softwoods  need  special  treat- 
ment. Then,  too,  many  sections  of  the  United  States  do  not 
have  suitable  climatic  conditions.  The  rainfall  is  either  inade- 
quate or  improperly  distributed.  Consequently,  this  cheap  and 
effective  method  is  frequently  impossible. 

Under  such  circumstances  railroad  logging  offers  the  most 
effective  substitute.  In  the  redwoods  the  cost  per  M  has  usually 
been  estimated  as  five  cents  per  mile.  Naturally  such  a  cheap 
method  is  the  first  choice  with  all  kinds  of  hardwood  and  where 
the  cUmate  and  topography  are  unfavorable  to  driving.  But  the 
initial  investment  per  mile  is  always  heavy  and  is  not  justified 
unless  the  stands  are  heavy  per  acre  or  the  railroad  can  ultimately 
be  converted  into  a  common  carrier.  As  a  result  there  are  many 
woods  operations  where  the  use  of  railroads  is  out  of  the  question. 
These  fall  into  four  main  groups : 

1 .  Operations  where  sleds  can  be  used 

2.  Operations  where  wagons  must  be  used. 

3.  Operations  where  chutes  must  be  used. 

4.  Operations  where  flumes  are  most  economical. 

Snow  is  the  best  road  material  in  the  world  and  where  several 
months  of  good  sledding  are  assured  that  is  by  all  odds  the  best 
method  to  employ.  Thirty-five  cents  per  M  and  mile  have  been 
attained  in  many  cases.  Like  driving,  sledding  has  evolved  from 
simple  beginnings  to  elaborate  processes  for  icing  and  keeping 
clean  the  roadbed.  There  are,  however,  many  sections  of  the 
country  where  the  snowfall  is  not  great  enough  to  permit  of  the 
use  of  sleds.  Wagons  are  then  the  only  recourse.  The  motive 
power  may  be  either  oxen,  mules,  horses  or  tractors  and  the 
wagons  either  low  wheeled  or  high.  But  whatever  the  appH- 
ances  used  this  is  a  relatively  expensive  method.  Seldom  can 
it  be  done  for  less  than  $1  per  M  per  mile.  The  remaining  two 
methods,  chutes  and  flumes,  are  special  ones  only  applicable  in 
special  cases.  Chutes  are  often  the  only  recourse  in  steep,  rocky 
country  while  flumes  require  a  large  supply  of  water.     No  general 


LOGGING   COSTS   FOR  LUMBER  191 

figures  can  be  given  for  the  cost  of  these  last  two  methods  since 
each  case  presents  a  separate  problem. 

The  forest  types  cannot  be  grouped  definitely  by  methods  of 
hauHng  because  two  or  more  methods  are  commonly  used  in 
each.  The  circumstances  of  the  individual  operation  determine 
which  is  the  most  economical.  However,  the  following  summary 
of  costs  of  transport  from  stump  to  mill  may  be  useful  as  a  general 
guide: 

I.  Cost  per  M  low  —  $2  per  M  or  less  before  the  War  —  three 
man  hours  and  four  horse  hours  per  M  —  short  haul  to  mill. 

Second  growth  white  pine. 
Engelmann  spruce. 

II.  Steam  yarding  and  railroad  hauling  —  heavy  stands  of 
large  timber  —  long  haul  to  mill  —  $5  per  M  in  19 14.  Three  to 
four  man  hours  per  M  and  large  interest  and  depreciation  charges 
on  machinery. 

Douglas  fir. 

Redwoods  and  sequoia. 
Western  red  cedar. 
Sugar  pine. 
Alaska  coast. 

III.  Short  haul  to  drivable  stream  —  $6  per  M  in  1914.  Six 
man  hours  and  not  more  than  our  horse  hours  per  M 

Southern  bottomlands. 
Alaska  interior. 

IV.  Animal  skidding  and  hauling  —  long  haul  —  9  to  10  man 
hours  and  10  to  20  horse  hours  per  M.  Seven  to  eight  dollars  per 
M  in  1914. 

Lake  States  white  pine. 
Silver  pine. 
Southern  pine. 
Western  yellow  pine. 
Northern  spruce. 
Northern  swamp. 
Lodgepole  pine. 


192  TIMBER  VALUATION 

V.  Hardwoods.  Long  haul.  At  least  lo  man  hours  and  20 
horse  hours  per  M.     Ten  to  fifteen  dollars  per  M. 

Northern  hardwoods. 

Southern  hardwoods. 

Tropical  hardwoods. 
The  cost  of  milhng  is  determined  directly  by  the  number  of 
operations  carried  on  in  the  mill  in  question.  A  small  portable 
mill  which  only  does  sawing  used  to  charge  from  $2  to  $3  per  M 
depending  upon  the  size  and  amount  of  timber  to  be  sawn,  i.e., 
the  cost  of  sawing  was  three  to  four  man  hours  per  M  plus  fixed 
charges.  This  is  the  simplest  case.  Even  the  sticking  of  the 
lumber  was  contracted  separately.  In  larger  mills,  however,  the 
cost  of  milling  or  manufacture  includes  a  large  number  of  items. 
Even  before  the  logs  reach  the  saw  boom  charges  have  to  be  met 
in  mills  located  on  streams  where  the  logs  of  a  number  of  com- 
panies are  passing.  They  are  then  hauled  up  the  ladder  into  the 
mill  and  go  to  circular,  gang,  or  band  saws.  Just  beyond  the  saws 
stands  a  gtader  who  marks  the  number  of  board  feet  and  the 
quality  on  each  board.  Some  boards  go  directly  to  the  mill 
yard  to  be  stacked  while  others  are  taken  to  the  planer,  dry  kiln, 
or  cut  up  for  special  purposes.  Slabs  go  either  to  the  engine  room 
for  fuel  or  are  made  into  shingles  or  laths.  Not  every  mill  of 
even  moderate  size  has  all  these  supplemental  processes.  Hence 
the  total  sawmill  charge  varies  with  each  individual  case.  For 
mills  equipped  with  planers,  kilns,  and  lath  machines  the  charge 
is  never  less  than  $5  per  M  and  may  run  up  as  high  as  $7.  This 
means  seven  to  eight  man  hours  per  M  plus  interest  and  depre- 
ciation charges  on  the  mill  equipment.  These  figures  apply  to 
softwoods  only.  Hardwoods  always  cost  more,  varying  from 
150  to  200  per  cent  of  the  charges  for  softwood. 

Regionally  the  great  variation  in  milling  costs  comes  with  the 
use  of  permanent  or  portable  mills.  The  standard  mill  has  been 
one  which  assumed  at  least  a  20-year  cut  and  was,  therefore, 
equipped  with  all  the  supplemental  machinery  that  economic 
conditions  permitted.  Commonly  it  had  two  or  three  different 
kinds  of  saws,  a  capacity  of  over  20M  feet  per  day  and  might  even 
build  up  enough  of  a  population  in  its  immediate  vicinity  to  fur- 


LOGGING  COSTS  FOR  LUMBER  193 

nish  a  market  for  the  waste  wood  which  would  otherwise  have  to 
be  burnt.  Frequently,  one  or  more  wood  using  industries  sprang 
up  in  the  neighborhood  and  depended  upon  its  by-products  for 
their  raw  material.  Such  a  mill  is  economical  in  its  use  of  the 
logs  brought  to  it  but  it  must  have  a  large  body  of  good  timber  to 
draw  upon.  In  the  woods  the  utilization  is  usually  low  because 
only  the  better  logs  will  repay  transportation.  Consequently  it 
has  frequently  happened  that  only  30  per  cent  of  the  tree  has  been 
taken  out  for  lumber. 

The  portable  mill  is  an  attempt  to  meet  conditions  entirely 
opposite  to  those  under  which  the  large  mill  works  most  advan- 
tageous y.  When  a  section  has  passed  from  the  pioneer  timber- 
mining  stage  into  the  farming  era  there  still  remain  many  bodies 
of  timber  which  are  too  small  for  the  large  mill  to  handle.  In- 
stead of  hauling  the  logs  to  the  mill,  the  mill  goes  to  the  timber. 
The  good  roads  of  a  farming  community  make  this  possible.  All 
the  valuable  timber  is  salvaged  and  yet  only  Hght,  seasoned  lum- 
ber is  hauled  out.  The  portable  mill  justifies  itself  by  the  saving 
in  transportation  charges  alone.  However,  conditions  do  not 
warrant  its  use  in  many  regions  as  yet.  The  farm  woodlot  is  its 
field  of  greatest  usefulness  so  that  it  is  successfully  employed  in 
the  following  types  in  many  instances: 

Northern  spruce. 
Northern  hardwoods. 
Second  growth  white  pine. 
Southern  pine  (especially  second  growth). 
Southern  hardwoods  (cove,  slope,  and  ridge). 
Likewise  the  scattered  stands  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  make  it 
applicable  in  the  following  types : 
Engelmann  spruce. 
Lodgepole  pine. 
Western  yellow  pine. 
Fir-larch. 

The  other  types  are  almost  universally  logged  to  a  large  mill 
because  they  have  extensive  stands  of  timber  which  justify  the 
development  of  means  of  log  transportation. 


194 


TIMBER   VALUATION 


Neither  type  of  mill  so  far  discussed  fills  the  needs  of  a  tract 
which  is  being  handled  on  a  "  sustained  yield  "  basis.  The  large 
mill  demands  logs  and  more  logs.  The  larger  the  output,  the  less 
the  depreciation  charge  per  M.  As  a  consequence  this  type  of 
mill  has  always  left  in  its  wake  denuded  hillsides  cut  without  any 
thought  of  regeneration.  Future  growth  was  sacrificed  ruthlessly 
to  present  profits.  The  portable  mill  has  likewise  been  an  active 
agent  of  forest  destruction.  The  desire  to  get  enough  to  make  a 
setup  pay  has  frequently  led  to  the  cutting  of  immature  timber 
and  little  attention  has  been  paid  to  keeping  the  logged  area  in 
productive  condition.  Furthermore  the  portable  mill  is  not  well 
adapted  to  the  manufacture  of  anything  but  low  grade  softwood 
lumber.  The  foundations  are  not  stable  enough  to  permit 
accurate  sawing  of  hardwood  nor  is  the  circular  saw  economical 
with  high  grade  softwood.  And  yet  the  circular  saw  with  its  big 
saw  kerf  has  proven  more  satisfactory  in  the  portable  mill  than 
the  more  thrifty  band  saw. 

When  a  tract  is  being  handled  as  a  permanent  forest  invest- 
ment no  more  than  the  growth  should  be  cut  so  that  the  capacity 
of  the  mill  must  not  determine  the  annual  fellings.  Furthermore, 
every  tract  has  a  variety  of  species  demanding  various  methods 
of  manufacture  if  they  are  to  be  put  in  the  best  form  for  sale. 
Consequently,  the  mill  should  have  planers,  edgers,  lath 
machines,  shingle  machines,  and  perhaps  a  dry  kiln.  In  other 
words,  a  versatile  mill  well  mthin  the  growth  capacity  of  the 
tract  is  needed,  not  a  highly  specialized  one  devoted  to  a  high 
output  of  one  kind  of  lumber. 

Cost  of  Logging  and  Manufacturing  Other  Products.  —  Rank- 
ing next  in  importance  to  lumber  firewood  deceives  second  con- 
sideration. From  stump  to  stove  it  passes  thru  the  following 
processes: 

Felling,  splitting  and  cutting  up  into  four  or  eight  foot 
lengths. 

Seasoning. 

Hauling. 

Sawing  up. 

Marketing. 


COST  OF  LOGGING  1 95 

The  standard  pile  of  firewood  is  four  feet  high,  eight  feet  long 
and  four  feet  wide.  One  man  may  work  effectively  in  putting 
up  wood  in  this  way  but  two  are  better  when  there  is  much  split- 
ting and  sawing.  The  amount  that  can  be  done  in  a  lo-hour 
day  varies  with  the  species,  the  size  of  the  timber,  and  the  skill 
of  the  workman.  Softwood  is  roughly  twice  as  easy  to  chop 
as  hardwood.  In  other  words  the  chopper  who  will  put  up  two 
cords  of  softwood  per  day  cannot  average  better  than  a  cord  of 
hardwood.  The  size  of  the  timber  is  also  an  important  factor. 
Either  large  or  small  stuff  goes  slowly  The  ideal  size  for  chop- 
ping is  a  tree  about  eight  inches  in  diameter  breast-high.  Assum- 
ing then  that  from  one  to  three  cords  may  be  cut  per  day  the  cost 
per  cord  of  putting  up  firewood  in  four  foot  piles  with  all  the 
pieces  over  six  inches  at  the  top  and  split,  ranges  from  $1  to  $4. 

Ordinarily  the  wood  is  seasoned  in  the  place  where  cut  before 
hauling.  The  cost  of  this  is  so  small  that  it  is  usually  neglected. 
It  simply  amounts  to  the  interest  on  the  money  tied  up  in  the 
firewood  for  four  to  eight  months.  The  shorter  period  will 
remove  two-thirds  of  the  moisture  but  eight  months  is  required 
to  thoroughly  air  dry  hardwood. 

The  cost  of  hauKng  varies  directly  with  the  weight  of  a  cord  of 
seasoned  wood.  This  ranges  from  over  two  tons  for  hickory  to 
one  ton  for  soft  pine.  Consequently  the  cost  per  cord  has  varied 
from  50  cents  to  $1  per  cord  per  mile. 

Firewood  may  be  marketed  either  in  four  foot  lengths  or  sawn 
to  16  inches  so  that  it  will  go  into  a  stove  and  then  retailed. 
Sawing  into  short  lengths  has  cost  from  50  cents  to  $1  although 
prices  have  advanced  since  191 7. 

It  is  apparent  from  the  foregoing  discussion  that  the  main 
factor  in  determining  the  price  of  firewood  is  the  distance  which 
it  has  to  be  hauled.  The  other  operations  have  cost  uniformly 
before  the  recent  advance  in  prices  about  $3  per  cord  for  soft- 
wood and  $5  for  hardwood.  Consequently  the  maximum  dis- 
tance which  wood  could  be  economically  hauled  was  fixed  by  the 
price  per  ton  of  its  competitor,  coal.  With  the  latter  retailing 
at  $10  per  ton  both  hardwood  and  softwood  could  be  hauled  about 
five  miles  with  the  ordinary  types  of  conveyances.    This  is  based 


196  TIMBER  VALUATION 

on  the  assumption  that  hardwood  has  twice  the  fuel  value  of 
softwood  and  is  equal  in  fuel  value  per  cord  to  a  ton  of  coal.  To 
the  objection  that  this  is  too  favorable  to  wood  it  may  be  urged 
that  wood  is  a  more  flexible  fuel  than  coal  and  is  therefore  used 
more  economically. 

Pulpwood,  extract  wood,  and  acid  wood  present  the  same 
problems  as  firewood  and  have  the  same  costs. 

Poles,  whether  intended  for  telegraph,  telephone,  or  mining 
purposes,  represent  one  of  the  most  economical  ways  of  using 
timber  because  there  are  few  steps  in  their  manufacture.  They 
are  simply  cut  off  at  the  stump  and  top  and  peeled  and  are  ready 
for  use.  These  operations  seldom  cost  more  than  $3  per  M  so 
that  the  determining  factor  was  the  distance  they  had  to  be 
hauled.  One  dollar  per  M  per  mile  has  been  an  outside  figure  for 
the  latter  operation  although  recent  advances  in  wages  and 
horse  hire  have  upset  even  such  a  conservative  figure. 
Railway  ties  go  through  the  following  processes: 

Felling  and  bucking. 

Hewing  or  sawing. 

Hauling. 
The  cost  of  these  steps  per  tie  varies  with  the  size  of  the  average 
tie.  The  standard  for  steam  railway  use  has  been  a  tie  with  an 
eight-inch  face  and  eight  feet  long.  Switch  ties  were  even  longer, 
usually  12  feet.  Trolley  railroad  ties,  on  the  other  hand,  are 
smaller,  being  satisfied  with  a  five  or  six  inch  face.  Hence  the 
number  of  ties  per  M  ranges  all  the  way  from  40  to  20  with  an 
average  of  30  for  the  standard  railway  tie.  Hewing  is  the  only 
new  item  and  this  has  been  done  in  most  cases  for  less  than  $1 
per  M.  The  distance  hauled  has,  of  course,  varied  a  great  deal 
but  the  margin  between  the  sale  value,  $12  to  $18  per  M  and 
all  costs  including  stumpage  has  seldom  permitted  ties  to  be 
hauled  by  wagons  more  than  eight  miles. 

The  cost  of  handhng  tanbark  can  best  be  expressed  in  values 
per  M  of  timber  felled  because  it  is  seldom  advisable  to  cut  hem- 
lock or  chestnut  oak  bark  for  the  tanning  material  alone.  The 
usual  method  is  to  handle  it  as  a  by-product.  Hence,  the  wood- 
land owner  wants  to  know  not  how  much  bark  an  area  will  yield 


PROFIT  197 

but  how  much  bark  he  wall  get  from  a  certain  amount  of  timber. 
This  cannot,  however,  be  stated  with  exactness,  because  it  varies 
with  the  locality.  In  fact  the  factors  which  control  it  have  not 
yet  been  worked  out  for  all  conditions.  But  the  range  is  not 
great.  From  one  and  one-half  to  two  M  board  feet  are  required 
to  yield  a  cord  of  bark. 

The  important  factor  m  bark  costs  is,  of  course,  the  distance 
which  it  has  to  be  hauled  although  this  seldom  amounts  to  as  large 
a  sum  as  the  cost  of  peeling  and  drying.  The  latter  is,  however, 
a  more  or  less  fixed  quantity  in  all  parts  of  the  country  so  that  the 
factor  which  fixes  the  difference  in  value  between  the  bark  of 
different  localities  is  after  aU  the  distance  which  it  has  to  be 
hauled. 

Average  bark  costs  have  been  as  follows: 

Peeling  and  drjang $2 .  00  per  cord. 

(Four  men  will  cut  and  peel  five  to  eight  cords 
per  day.) 

Hauling o.  75  per  cord. 

Loading o.  75  per  cord. 

$3 .  50  per  cord. 

Expressed  in  terms  of  board  feet  it  took  in  191 5  approximately 
$1.75  extra  per  M  to  take  care  of  the  bark. 

Posts  are  a  relatively  unimportant  item  as  compared  with  the 
other  products  of  the  woods  yet  in  the  aggregate  they  total  a 
billion  board  feet  annually  the  country  over.  The  cost  of  get- 
ting them  is  small  per  unit  but  large  per  M  because  of  the  smaU 
size  of  the  units.  Seldom  do  posts  cost  more  than  20  cents  to 
make  and  deliver  but  this  amounts  to  approximately  $20  per  M. 

Profit.  —  Trade  secrecy  has  been  the  main  obstacle  in  reaching 
a  general  agreement  as  to  what  is  a  reasonable  profit  in  a  lumber- 
ing operation.  Lumbermen  have  been  loath  to  speak  frankly  of 
anything  but  their  losses  but  even  this  has  failed  to  allay  the 
suspicion  —  often  wholly  unfounded  —  on  the  part  of  the  general 
public  that  enormous  and  unearned  fortunes  were  being  made  out 
of  the  business.  Much  of  this  misunderstanding  has  arisen  from 
a  failure  to  realize  that  the  returns  must  be  high  in  lumbering 
because  the  risks  are  great.     Weather  conditions  cannot  be  con- 


198  TIMBER  VALUATION 

trolled  in  the  woods  as  they  can  under  a  factory  roof.  Labor  is 
necessarily  nomadic  under  the  present  system  because  the  men 
cannot  take  their  families  into  the  woods  with  them.  The  pro- 
fessional lumberjack  is  notoriously  a  drifter.  It  is  a  common 
saying  that  a  large  operation  needs  three  full  sized  crews,  one 
working,  one  going  out  and  another  coming  in.  In  other  words, 
the  difficulty  of  breaking  in  new  men,  common  to  most  industries, 
is  magnified  and  accentuated  in  lumbering.  Then,  too,  capital- 
ists are  commonly  not  so  famihar  with  the  technique  of  the  busi- 
ness as  with  that  of  the  merchandising  and  manufacturing  indus- 
tries so  that  they  are  less  willing  to  finance  logging  operations. 
Added  to  their  unfamiharity  with  the  methods  of  the  business  is 
the  long  period  frequently  required  to  reaUze  on  the  investment. 
Where  an  expensive  mill  must  first  be  erected  and  logging  rail- 
roads built  the  capital  cannot  be  retired  for  10,  20  or  more  years. 
The  combination  of  these  factors  makes  the  rate  of  return  neces- 
sarily higher  than  it  is  in  industries  with  a  quicker  turn  over, 
better  understood,  more  easily  standardized  and  less  hazardous. 
While  a  gross  margin  of  10  per  cent  is  ample  in  the  wholesale 
grocery  business,  or  the  manufacture  of  shSpes,  25  per  cent  is 
none  too  much  in  many  lumbering  operations/ 

What  the  rate  should  be  for  any  particulp  operation  depends 
upon  several  factors.  The  highest  return  is  naturally  demanded 
in  the  more  hazardous  operations  Hke  the  opening  up  of  a  new 
region.  An  example  of  such  an  enterprise  is  the  beginning  which 
has  just  been  made  in  the  exploitation  of  Brazihan  timber. 
Methods  and  markets  must  be  developed  and  the  operation  has 
all  the  hazards  of  a  pioneer  enterprise  and  is  accordingly  entitled 
to  a  high  return  to  offset  the  extra  costs  and  unforseeable  losses. 
On  the  other  hand  an  operation  in  a  region  where  the  methods 
are  standardized  does  not  require  so  great  a  return.  An  example 
of  this  latter  kind  is  a  New  England  portable  sawmill  enterprise. 
Intermediate  between  these  two  extremes  are  the  medium  sized 
job  in  a  region  where  logging  is  one  of  the  principal  industries  and 
large  enterprises  which  open  up  new  blocks  of  timber  in  sections 
where  markets  are  assured  and  the  best  methods  have  already 
been  worked  out. 


PROFIT  199 

Next  to  hazard  the  most  important  factor  in  determining  the 
proper  rate  of  return  is  the  frequency  of  turnover.  A  chestnut 
acidwood  operation  in  which  wood  may  be  converted  into  ready 
money  as  soon  as  cut  and  hauled  does  not,  naturally,  require  a 
large  return  on  the  single  job  because  the  capital  invested  may 
be  utilized  again  and  again  during  the  year.  For  example,  if  two 
months  of  cutting  give  a  return  of  3  per  cent  on  the  investment 
and  five  such  operations  are  carried  on  during  the  year  it  is 
obvious  that  the  annual  return  will  be  15  per  cent.  On  the  other 
hand  an  enterprise  which  must  have  its  logs  come  on  a  six  months' 
drive  and  season  its  lumber  another  six  months,  must  in  justice 
receive  higher  return  per  unit  of  finished  product  whether  that  be 
cords  or  M  feet  board  measure. 

Size  is  a  factor  hkewise  in  determining  a  fair  profit.  A  large 
amount  of  capital  invested  for  a  long  period  in  an  enterprise  which 
is  safeguarded  by  its  own  bulk  does  not  need  such  a  high  return 
as  a  small  enterprise  which  must  fight  its  way  at  every  step  to 
keep  its  larger  competitors  from  crowding  it  out.  Hence  the 
small  jobs  involving  relatively  few  men  and  teams  should  pay  a 
higher  return  per  M  than  the  large  sawmill  fed  by  its  own  logging 
railroad  and  controlling  many  thousands  of  acres  of  stumpage. 

While  generahzations  cannot  be  safely  made  u^thout  allowance 
or  exceptional  cases  it  may  be  said  that  the  following  rules  will 
apply  in  most  cases: 

1.  Operations  in  regions  where  the  methods  are  thoroughly 

standardized,  as  for  example  the  New  England  portable 
sawmill  region,  are  content  with  net  profits  of  $1  to  $2 
per  M. 

2.  Operations  of  medium  size  in  less  well  settled  regions 

demand  average  returns  of  25  per  cent  per  M  on  the 
capital  invested. 

3.  Large  operations  involving  investment  for  20  years  or 

more  are  content  with  a  return  of  10  per  cent  on  the 
total  investment. 

4.  Pioneer  enterprises,  whatever  their  size,  should  have  a 

return  of  25  per  cent  per  M  on  the  investment. 


200  TIMBER   VALUATION 

Exactly  what  constitutes  the  investment  per  M  is  sometimes 
difficult  to  determine.  Small  operations  present  no  special 
difficulty  because  the  capital  is  small,  consisting  of  relatively  few 
tools,  a  team  or  two,  wagons  or  sleds,  and  the  amount  necessary 
to  carry  the  payroll,  interest  charges,  taxes,  and  insurance.  The 
sum  of  these  items  divided  by  the  number  of  M  feet  to  be  logged 
gives  the  investment  per  M.  Furthermore,  the  contract  prices 
being  paid  in  the  region  for  the  different  steps  from  the  stump  to 
the  stick  furnish  the  best  kind  of  a  check  since  they  are  the  com- 
bined judgment  of  the  community  as  to  what  must  be  invested 
per  M  to  get  the  desired  results.  Much  more  difficult  to  deter- 
mine accurately  is  the  proper  charge  in  large  and  complicated 
enterprises.  However,  the  following  Ust  of  items  which  may 
enter  into  this  total  may  be  useful  in  checking  over  to  make  sure 
that  nothing  has  been  overlooked : 

1.  Permanent  improvements  or   durable   equipment   like   a 

railway  or  sawmill  to  be  used  over  a  long  period.  The 
charge  per  M  is  determined  by  dividing  the  total  for  these 
items  by  the  whole  amount  of  timber  to  be  manufactured 
with  them. 

2.  Operating  costs  such  as  wages,  food  supplies,  destructible 

tools,  interest  on  operating  capital,  taxes,  overhead 
costs,  etc.  These  are  usually  totaled  annually  and  di- 
vided by  the  cut  for  that  period. 

3.  Maintenance  charges  such  as  depreciation  costs,  amortiza- 

tion payments,  insurance,  etc.     These  may  be  most  con- 
veniently calculated  on  an  annual  basis. 
Freight  Charges.  —  Absolutely  and  relatively  freight  charges 
are  the  most  important  single  item  in  wood  product  costs.     For 
example  in  lumber  retail  prices  the  various  steps  are  divided  as 
follows  on  the  average: 

Per  cent 
Logging 25 

Milling 20 

Freight 27 

Wholesaling 3 

Retailing 25 

100 


FREIGHT   CHARGES 


For  the  northwest  the  ratio  of  freight  costs  is  even  greater. 
For  example  in  the  case  of  Oregon  or  Washington  Douglas  fir 
35  to  40  per  cent  of  the  retail  cost  goes  for  freight  costs.  Even 
in  the  southeast  the  charge  to  the  large  markets  represents  1 5  to 
25  per  cent  of  the  total  cost. 

In  Butler's  report  on  "  The  Distribution  of  Softwood  Lumber 
in  the  Middle  West,"  he  gives  the  following  freight  charges  per 
M  and  per  100  lb.  using  pre-war  rates: 


Portland  to  Chicago 

Westwood,  California  to  Chicago 
Coeur  d'Alene,  Idaho  to  Chicago. 
Bogalusa,  Louisiana  to  Chicago. 
Bemidji,  Minnesota  to  Chicago.  . 


Cents 

$13.75 

55 

12.50 

60 

9.88 

52 

6.12 

24I 

3.20 

16 

Briefly  summed  up,  it  may  be  said  to  cost  less  than  $5  to  get 
northeastern  lumber  onto  the  general  markets,  between  $5  and 
$10  for  freight  from  the  southeast,  and  $10  and  $15  per  M  from 
the  Rocky  Mountain  and  Pacific  coast  regions. 

The  Interstate  Commerce  Commision  Report  for  1918  gives 
the  annual  freight  bill  paid  by  the  lumber  and  forest  products 
producers  of  the  United  States  as  $215,000,000.  Of  the  total 
railway  tonnage  they  constitute  11  per  cent,  being  exceeded  only 
by  mineral  products  and  general  manufactures.  As  compared 
with  lumber  soft  coal  yields  34  per  cent  less  revenue  per  ton  mile, 
hard  coal  13  per  cent  less,  and  grain  9  per  cent  less.  Dressed 
meat  and  cotton  pay  26  per  cent  and  60  per  cent  more  per  ton 
mile,  respectively. 

Freight  rates  are  of  various  kinds.  The  following  need  defini- 
tion before  the  general  subject  can  be  discussed  further: 

(i)  Commodity  rate  —  a  freight  charge  levied  against  all 
articles  of  the  same  kind.  For  example  the  rate  for  lumber  for  a 
60-mile  haul  on  the  Boston  &  Maine  Railway  is  $2.85  per  M  while 
logs  take  a  different  commodity  rate  and  cost  $3.95  per  M  even 
for  softwoods.  With  forest  products  three  commodity  classes 
are  usually  made:    "  (i)  rough  products  such  as  logs,  bolts,  or 


202  TIMBER   VALUATION 

flitches;  (2)  lumber  or  other  partially  finished  articles,  not  yet 
worked  into  a  final  manufactured  product;  (3)  finished  articles 
Hke  boxes,  barrels,  doors  or  blinds;  and  (4)  *  woods  of  value  ' 
such  as  walnut  and  mahogany." 

(2)  Local  rates  are  rates  which  apply  between  stations  on  the 
same  railway  system,  usually  within  a  state. 

(3)  Thru  or  joint  rates,  on  the  other  hand,  apply  to  shipments 
made  for  long  distances,  commonly  over  two  or  more  railways. 

(4)  Combination  rates  are  rates  which  are  the  sum  of  two  or 
more  local  rates  with  or  without  reduction. 

(5)  Basing  rates  are  the  sum  of  a  thru  rate  10  a  terminus  like 
New  York  and  a  local  rate  to  the  point  of  destination.  For 
example,  the  all  rail  rate  from  Chicago  to  Bridgeport,  Conn., 
would  be  the  thru  rate  from  Chicago  to  New  York  plus  the  local 
rate  between  New  York  and  Bridgeport. 

(6)  Manufacture-in-transit  rates  permit  the  conversion  of  logs 
into  rough  or  dressed  lumber  en  route.  For  example,  a  lumber 
concern  may  ship  its  logs  to  the  mill  where  they  are  sawn  and 
planed  and  then  re-ship  the  lumber,  all  on  the  same  rates.  Such 
rates  are  really  combination  commodity  rates  with  special  privi- 
leges in  regard  to  the  use  of  the  freight  cars  employed. 

In  any  consideration  of  the  subject  of  forest  product  freight 
charges  it  must  be  constantly  borne  in  mind  that  these  industries 
have  seldom  received  any  special  consideration  on  the  part  of  the 
railroads.  The  freight  agent  has  tried  to  make  his  charges  "  as 
high  as  the  traffic  would  stand."  Consequently  higher  rates  are 
applied  to  the  more  valuable  classes  and  grades  whenever  they 
can  be  easily  distinguished.  This  is  usually  taken  care  of  by  the 
commodity  classification  already  discussed.  For  example,  cabi- 
net woods  pay  more  than  ordinary  softwood  lumber.  There  is, 
however,  one  apparent  exception  to  this  general  rule.  Dressed 
lumber  commonly  pays  no  higher  rate  than  rough  lumber, 
although  there  may  be  a  difference  of  $50  per  M  in  the  sale  value 
of  the  two.  But  the  reason  for  this  is  not  far  to  seek.  It  is 
simply  a  matter  of  convenience.  The  cost  of  inspection  on  the 
part  of  the  railroad  would  be  excessive,  it  is  feared,  were  the  freight 
rates  varied  with  the  grades.     As  a  result  seasoned  and  dressed 


FREIGHT   CHARGES  203 

lumber  pays  much  higher  returns  than  unseasoned  rough  lum- 
ber because  it  is  Ughter  in  weight,  less  bulky  for  the  same  quan- 
tity and  has  a  wider  margin  for  profit.  To  show  how  this  works 
out  take  the  case  of  the  sawmills  in  Oregon  and  Washington. 
With  a  $15  per  M  freight  charge  to  meet  they  can  only  afford  to 
ship  east  their  best  grades.  There  is  no  margin  for  profit  on 
common  and  boxboard  lumber.  And  the  same  holds  true  in 
greater  or  less  degree  for  all  the  centers  of  forest  production. 
Freight  rates  encourage  skimming  off  the  cream  only. 

Foreign  freight  rates  per  ton  mile  are  higher  as  a  rule  than  ours 
for  all  commodities.  For  example,  our  average  rate  per  ton  mile 
in  1914  was  approximately  8  to  10  cents  while  in  the  United 
Kingdom  the  rate  was  nearly  three  times  this  in  1913.  Den- 
mark's rates  were  even  higher.  Russia  and  Japan  were  the  only 
countries  that  had  average  rates  at  all  approaching  ours.  Forest 
product  rates  furnished  no  exception  to  this  general  rule.  As 
against  an  average  rate  of  3  to  10  cents  per  ton  mile  for  transcon- 
tinental lumber  shipments  the  lowest  rate  that  Dr.  Schenck  cites 
in  his  discussion  of  freight  rates  is  4  to  10  cents  per  ton  mile  and 
this  was  a  special  rate  from  Austria  to  Germany  and  France 
intended  to  offset  the  import  duties  levied  by  the  latter  against 
Austrian  lumber.  But  there  is  one  marked  difference  between 
European  and  American  practice.  The  former  makes  a  differ- 
ence between  grades  of  lumber.  For  example,  the  rate  for  dis- 
tances over  220  miles  is  double  for  lumber  what  it  is  for  pulp- 
wood,  firewood,  mine  props  and  railway  ties.  From  the  stand- 
point of  forest  production  this  is  a  very  valuable  arrangement 
since  it  places  no  premium  on  the  marketing  of  the  higher  grades 
but  gives  the  poorer  grades  a  fair  chance  to  reach  the  general 
market.  What  such  a  change  would  mean  to  the  American  for- 
ests can  be  quickly  shown  by  two  examples.  In  the  northern 
hardwood  type  the  principal  silvicultural  problem  is  the  removal 
of  the  mature  hardwoods  in  order  to  give  the  more  profitable 
spruce,  fir  and  pine  a  better  chance.  At  the  present  time  only 
the  very  best  parts  of  the  hardwood  trees  are  reaching  the  saw- 
mills. By  lower  rates  on  the  poorer  grades  of  hardwood  lumber 
and  especially  on  cordwood  the  woods  in  this  type  could  in  many 


204  TIMBER   VALUATION 

instances  be  put  in  good  silvicultural  condition.  A  still  more 
striking  illustration  is  furnished  by  the  freight  rates  on  north- 
western lumber.  Since  no  difference  is  made  in  the  rates  on  clear 
and  common  lumber,  the  profits  are  much  greater  on  the  former 
and  only  the  good  butt  logs  are  taken  out  of  the  woods.  The 
second  grade  logs  rot  in  the  woods  and  the  slabs  are  burnt  at  con- 
desirable  expense. 

Stumpage  Prices. —  Using  the  formula  that  stumpage  prices 
should  equal  the  difference  between  the  average  sale  value  of  the 
various  grades  obtainable  from  a  stand  of  timber  and  the  sum  of 
all  the  costs  of  logging,  manufacture  and  transportation  including 
a  fair  profit,  the  determination  of  stumpage  prices  would  appear 
simply  a  matter  of  mathematical  calculation.  There  is,  however, 
still  another  factor  that  needs  to  be  considered.  This  is  the  lag 
of  stumpage  prices  behind  fluctuations  in  lumber  prices.  The 
main  reason  for  this  is  that  standing  timber  is  not  at  present  an 
easily  negotiable  commodity.  Forest  conservation  has  not  as 
yet  reached  the  point  where  timberland  is  considered  as  first  class 
security.  Fires,  insects,  fungi,  uncertain  labor  conditions  and 
inclement  weather  must  be  circumvented  before  stumpage  can 
be  converted  into  ready  cash.  Consequently,  when  lumber 
advances  there  is  no  immediate  rise  in  stumpage  prices  because  a 
standing  tree  has  to  go  thru  many  processes  before  it  yields  boards. 
Furthermore,  the  cost  of  these  processes  may  have  increased 
to  the  point  where  any  advance  in  the  price  of  the  finished  prod- 
uct is  absorbed  long  before  the  stumpage  price  is  reached.  For 
example,  a  40  per  cent  increase  in  lumber  prices  has  no  prospect 
of  effecting  a  similar  rise  in  stumpage  figures  when  there  is  a  100 
per  cent  increase  in  the  cost  of  food  and  wages.  This  condition 
actually  prevailed  during  the  Great  War. 

How  much  difference  there  should  be  between  the  rate  of 
change  in  lumber  prices  and  the  rate  of  increase  or  decrease  in 
stumpage  cannot,  of  course,  be  definitely  stated.  It  depends 
upon  various  factors  which  differ  with  the  locality  and  season. 
In  general,  however,  it  may  be  taken  as  a  safe  rule  that  the 
stumpage  price  determined  by  formula  needs  discount  by  an 
amount  sufficient  to  allow  for  probable  changes  in  costs.     The 


STUMPAGE    PRICES 


205 


future  trend  of  costs  must  be  considered  because  no  one  is  going 
to  make  changes  in  stumpage  prices  for  passing  fluctuations  in 
costs.  For  example,  a  temporary  increase  in  the  price  of  corn 
need  not  afifect  disadvantageously  the  price  of  pine  stumpage 
even  tho  corn  is  fed  to  both  men  and  mules.  There  is  a  good 
chance  that  by  the  time  the  lumber  is  ready  for  market  the 
price  of  corn  may  have  changed  again,  and  for  the  better.  Yet, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  logger  and  sawmill  man  must  be  on  the 
lookout  for  possible  increases  in  costs  so  that  they  do  not  pay  so 
much  for  their  logs  that  their  margin  is  entirely  \viped  out  by  an 
advance  in  food  or  labor. 

Of  the  factors  that  determine  stumpage  prices  the  costs  of 
hauHng  the  logs  and  the  lumber  are  the  most  important.  The 
other  factors  only  vary  within  narrow  limits.  As  a  consequence 
the  stumpage  price  of  any  piece  of  timber  is  dependent  primarily 
upon  its  distance  from  a  sawmill  and  the  length  of  freight  haul 
from  the  mill  to  a  market.  To  illustrate  take  two  such  unlike 
softwoods  as  second  growth  white  pine  and  redwood.  Of  course, 
the  latter  yields  very  much  better  grades  than  second  growth 
white  pine  because  the  pine  has  seldom  been  allowed  to  grow  more 
than  100  years  while  five  times  that  would  be  nearer  the  average 
age  of  the  redwood  which  is  now  being  cut.  In  fact  second  growth 
pine  yields  no  wide  clear  lumber.  The  percentages  of  the  grades 
obtained  from  each  would  be  about  as  follows: 


Redwood 

Second  grovrth 
pine 

Per  cent 

IS 

20 
25 
40 

Per  cent 

Shop 

5 

85 

100 

100 

Nevertheless  the  average  sale  value  for  both  at  the  mill  has  been 
about  $30  per  M  for  the  log  run,  with  redwood  averaging  not  more 
than  20  per  cent  higher  than  the  pine.  In  the  same  way  the  log- 
ging costs  did  not  vary  greatly.  Before  the  war  S5  per  ]VI  would 
have  covered  all  costs  from  stump  to  mill  pond  in  either  case. 


2o6  TIMBER  VALUATION 

Milling  has  been  slightly  higher  in  the  case  of  redwood  because 
some  of  it  was  planed  but  Sio  was  a  safe  figure  for  the  total  cost 
of  the  finished  lumber  in  CaKfornia  or  New  England.  Conse- 
quently there  would  remain  a  margin  of  $20  —  sale  value  of  $30 
less  costs  of  $10  —  to  cover  freight  charges  and  stumpage  price. 
In  the  case  of  redwood  even  pre-war  charges  took  fully  three- 
quarters  of  this  margin  of  $20  while  one-quarter  was  ample  to 
cover  all  freight  costs  in  the  case  of  second  growth  pine.  Hence, 
the  stumpage  price  of  redwood  has  never  been  over  $5  per  M  while 
that  of  second  growth  white  pine  has  already  gone  over  $10  per 
M  in  the  case  of  accessible  tracts. 

The  general  rule  that  sale  values,  logging  costs  and  manu- 
facturing costs  are  relatively  constant  and  that  freight  charges 
fix  stumpage  holds  for  hardwoods  as  well  as  softwoods  with  a 
few  rare  exceptions.  These  de\'iations  from  the  rule  are  the 
rarer  cabinet  woods  like  walnut,  mahogany,  etc.,  in  which  the 
sale  value  is  far  above  that  of  ordinary  lumber.  But  even  with 
these  the  stumpage  price  of  different  stands  of  the  same  species 
is  fixed  by  the  distance  from  mill  to  market.  For  example,  wal- 
nut near  a  furniture  or  gun  factory  in  Ohio  is  worth  two  or  three 
times  what  the  same  or  better  quality  of  tree  is  valued  at  in  the 
mountains  in  Kentucky. 

Since  then  the  general  rule  holds  that  stumpage  prices  depend 
upon  distance  from  market  it  follows  that  they  must  be  approxi- 
mately the  same  within  a  given  region  tributary  to  any  one  mar- 
ket. Markets  may  be  either  local,  special  or  general.  The  first 
are  the  best  in  all  cases  because  they  reduce  freight  charges  to  a 
minimum  but  unfortunately  no  local  market  is  unlimited.  Most 
are,  in  fact,  of  small  capacity  in  power  to  absorb  such  a  common 
product  as  lumber.  The  same  apphes  to  special  markets.  They 
can  only  take  particular  grades  and  those  in  limited  quantities. 
Hence  it  follows  that  the  general  markets  are  the  great  price 
fixers  in  the  forest  product  industries.  Indirectly  they  also  deter- 
mine sale  values  in  the  local  and  special  markets  because  no  local 
price  can  exceed  for  any  length  of  time  the  general  market  level 
plus  the  freight  charges  from  the  general  market  to  the  locahty  in 
question. 


STUMPAGE    PRICES 


207 


The  great  general  lumber  markets  of  the  United  States  are 
simply  distributing  points  into  which  the  mill  men  ship  their 
lumber  and  from  which  the  wood  users  purchase.  -This  means 
that  they  are  located  at  the  termini  of  water  routes  and  the  sup- 
ply points  for  manufacturing  and  agricultural  centers.  Every 
city  of  any  size  answers  one  or  both  of  these  qualifications  in  some 
measure  but  the  following  are  preeminent  as  lumber  markets: 

Boston  —  the  commercial  center  of  New  England. 

New  York  — a  great  supply  point  for  all  sorts  of  native 

lumber  and  also  the  largest  importer  of  tropical  hardwoods. 
Baltimore  —  by  reason  of  its  advantageous  tidewater  loca- 
tion an  important  distributing  point  for  pine  from  the 

south  Atlantic  states. 
Norfolk  —  a  good  harbor  makes  this  city  the  natural  export 

center  for  Virginia,  West  Virginia  and  North  Carolina. 
Buffalo  and  North  Tonawanda  —  at  the  eastern  end  of  the 

Great  Lakes  and  hence  the  natural  eastern  market  place 

for  lumber  from  the  Great  Lakes  region  and  the  upper 

Mississippi  valley. 
Chicago—  the    distributing    point    for    the    north    central 

states. 
Minnesota  Transfer  —  the  transfer  point  for  western  lumber 

coming  east,  especially  that  from  the  northwest. 
Cincinnati  —  an  important  distributing  center  for  southern 

hardwoods. 
St.  Louis  —  important  in  the  southern  pine  and  hardwood 

trade  because  of  its  location  on  the  Mississippi  River. 
New  Orleans  —  used  both  as  a  market  for  southern  pine  and 

cypress  from  Texas,   Arkansas   and   Louisiana   and   an 

exporting  port. 
San  Francisco  —  the  export  center  for  redwood  and  sugar 

pine. 
Portland,  Oregon  —  a  red  cedar  shingle  center  and  shipping 

point  for  northwestern  lumber  in  general. 
Seattle  —  the  principal  port  of  export  to  the  Far  East  of 

Douglas  fir  lumber  and  red  cedar  shingles. 


208  TIMBER   VALUATION 

Spokane  —  the  distributing  center  for  the  Inland  Empire 
and  the  marketing  point  for  silver  pine,  western  larch  and 
Douglas  fir  from  northern  Idaho  and  eastern  Washington. 

Since  then  the  timber  with  the  shortest  haul  to  market  has  the 
highest  value  it  follows  that  the  highest  stumpage  prices  will  be 
found  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  United  States  where  the  bulk  of 
the  population  lives  and  the  major  portion  of  the  manufacturing 
is  done.  White  pine,  walnut  and  white  ash  have  already  reached 
stumpage  prices  of  $15  per  M  board  feet  in  New  England,  New 
York,  Pennsylvania  and  the  Lake  States.  From  this  maximum 
prices  taper  off  to  the  vanishing  point  for  the  less  desirable  species 
in  inaccessible  localities.  In  the  southeast  yellow  poplar,  yellow 
pine,  cypress,  walnut,  ash  and  oak  have  all  risen  in  value  to 
nearly  $10  per  M  on  accessible  properties.  The  less  valuable 
hardwoods,  like  black  oak  and  tupelo  gum  for  example,  are,  how- 
ever, still  selling  for  less  than  $5  per  M.  In  the  Rocky  Mountain 
region  and  on  the  Pacific  coast  stumpage  prices  are  in  general 
well  below  $5  per  M  even  for  the  largest  and  most  accessible  tim- 
ber. In  fact  the  only  places  where  anything  like  this  amount  has 
been  realized  have  been  isolated  communities  in  the  semi-arid 
districts  where  the  supply  of  standing  timber  was  limited  and  long 
wagon  hauls  made  importation  out  of  the  question. 

Stumpage  prices  are  governed  by  distance  from  market  almost 
irrespective  of  use  value.  In  other  words,  no  matter  how  fine 
timber  may  be  it  must  be  near  to  market  to  bring  a  good  price 
standing.  An  extreme  example  of  this  is  the  case  of  the  tropical 
hardwoods.  Bringing  fancy  prices  at  the  wholesale  markets  in 
the  form  of  boards  or  even  hewed  logs  the  trees  themselves  are 
worth  less  than  $1  per  M.  The  cost  of  logging  with  native  labor 
in  a  tropical  climate  and  the  long  sea  voyage  absorb  all  the  mar- 
gin which  with  more  accessible  species  goes  to  the  owner  of 
stumpage. 

In  order  to  determine  what  prices  will  be  in  the  future  it  is 
necessary  to  know  how  they  have  acted  in  the  past.  Fig.  14 
brings  together  figures  on  past  stumpage  prices.  Furthermore 
Sauerbeck's  index  figures  are  given  in  order  to  give  a  basis  for 
comparing  fluctuations  in  stumpage  prices  with  the  changes  in 


STUMPAGE   PRICES  209 

general  commodity  prices.  The  Prussian  and  Saxon  figures  are 
perhaps  most  interesting  because  they  cover  the  longest  period. 
For  instance,  during  the  period  1830  to  1875  Saxon  wood  values 
increased  at  the  rate  of  4I  per  cent  compound  interest  annually. 
In  Prussia,  which  has  poorer  markets,  the  rate  of  increase  during 
the  same  period  was  2^  per  cent.  For  the  70-year  period  from 
1830  to  1900  the  rate  of  annual  increase  in  Saxony  was  a  trifle 
less  than  3  per  cent  while  Prussia  maintained  a  rate  of  2|  per  cent 
for  this  longer  period  too.  Hence  Doctor  Fernow's  statement 
that  German  stumpage  prices  have  been  increasing  at  the  rate  of 
2  per  cent  per  annum,  compound  interest,  for  the  last  hundred 
years  is  amply  conservative.  Nor  is  the  force  of  this  vitiated  by 
corresponding  increases  in  the  prices  of  other  commodities.  On 
the  contrary  general  commodity  prices  decreased  quite  steadily 
from  1820  to  1895  with  a  few  minor  exceptions.  Their  rise  during 
the  Great  War  is,  of  course,  due  to  special  causes  outside  the  usual 
laws  of  supply  and  demand. 

Our  own  experience  substantiates  European  experience. 
Wliite  pine  stumpage,  for  example,  increased  at  the  rate  of  6^ 
per  cent,  compound  interest,  in  Michigan  from  1865  to  1905  and 
at  the  annual  rate  of  7^  per  cent  in  Minnesota  from  1880  to 
1905.  These  increases  are  all  the  more  remarkable  in  the  face  of 
a  marked  decrease  in  general  commodity  prices,  from  1865-1895. 

Another  point  still  more  clearly  brought  out  in  the  chart  is 
that  the  rate  of  increase  has  not  been  uniform.  There  have  been 
distinct  ups  and  downs.  For  example,  the  effect  of  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War  is  clearly  shown  in  both  the  Saxon  and  Prussian 
curve  —  a  sharp  rise  followed  by  a  drop  and  that  in  turn  giving 
place  to  a  slower  recovery.  In  the  same  way  1907  marked  the 
high  water  mark  for  stumpage  prices  in  the  United  States  until  the 
rise  brought  about  by  the  Great  War.  In  fact  the  period  from 
1908  to  1914  was  one  of  distinct  stagnation  if  not  depression  in 
American  lumber  circles. 

But  in  spite  of  occasional  drops  the  general  increase  is  so  appar- 
ent that  it  may  safely  be  laid  do^vn  as  a  general  law  that  the  trend 
of  stumpage  prices  has  been  upward  the  world  over  for  the  last 
hundred  years  in  spite  of  the  opening  up  of  many  new  timber 


2IO  TIMBER    VALUATION 

regions.  For  example,  the  export  of  lumber  from  America  to 
Europe  in  any  considerable  quantity  has  all  occurred  during  this 
period  and  the  center  of  production  has  moved  from  the  north- 
eastern states  to  the  southeastern  pine  region  and  is  now  about  to 
jump  across  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Pacific  northwest. 

Substitution  has  also  been  a  factor  which  might  have  affected 
seriously  the  demand  for  wood  and  been  reflected  in  lower  stump- 
age  prices.  The  consumption  of  cement,  for  example,  has  in- 
creased from  II  milUon  barrels  in  1892  to  90  milhon  barrels  in 
1913  with  a  corresponding  decrease  in  the  cost  per  barrel.  Coal 
and  steel  have  likewise  taken  the  place  of  wood  in  many  ways. 
Thelen  estimated  in  191 7  that  "  approximately  70  per  cent  of  the 
present  cut  of  lumber  goes  into  forms  of  use  whose  demands 
appear  to  be  decreasing."  The  plain  fact  is  that  substitution 
will  undoubtedly  go  much  farther.  The  crest  of  lumber  pro- 
duction is  undoubtedly  behind  us.  There  has  been  a  steady 
decrease  in  the  amount  of  lumber  sawn  since  1909.  But  the 
important  point  is  not  that  we  are  using  less  wood  but  that  we 
have  been  using  it  lavishly.  Our  consumption  per  capita  was 
estimated  in  1900  to  be  approximately  six  times  that  of  Germany, 
seven  times  that  of  France  and  16  times  that  of  Great  Britain. 
We  have  not  only  used  wood  "  from  the  cradle  to  the  coffin  "  but 
wallowed  in  it  en  route. 

This  does  not,  however,  mean  that  wood  will  in  time  be  replaced 
either  in  whole  or  to  any  considerable  extent.  It  has  too  many 
valuable  qualities  to  be  entirely  superseded.  It  is  light,  strong, 
easily  worked,  durable,  a  non-conductor  of  heat  and  electricity 
and  best  of  all  relatively  cheap  even  assuining  that  prices  will 
reach  throughout  the  world  the  level  attained  in  the  European 
countries  which  do  not  grow  enough  for  their  own  use.  As.  com- 
pared with  a  piece  of  iron  of  the  same  weight  a  stick  of  yellow  pine 
is  six  times  stronger  and  very  much  cheaper.  So  it  is  safe  to 
assume  that  wood  will  always  be  in  great  demand  for  a  very 
large  number  of  uses. 

But  its  value  in  construction  and  manufacture  is  not  the  main 
reason  for  predicting  advancing  values  for  wood.  The  decreasing 
supply  is  the  controlling  factor.     This  fact  is  one  difflcult  for 


STUMPAGE    PRICES 


nVt  CENTS 


eii  CENTS 


4  CENTS  PER  CUBIC  FOOT 


2  CENTS  PER  CUBIC  FOOT 


$1.50  PER   M   FT.  B.M- 
$1.00  FER  M  FT.  B.M, 


1820  1840  1860  1880  1900 

Fig.  14 
Comparison  of  the  cost  of  li\'ing  and  stumpage  prices. 


1920 


212  TIMBER  VALUATION 

most  of  us  to  realize.  We  may  have  seen  one  kind  of  lumber 
vanish  from  the  market  because  it  had  been  overcut  but  there 
have  usually  been  competitors  to  take  its  place.  For  example, 
eastern  white  pine  is  very  difficult  to  secure  at  the  present  time 
in  large  clear  boards  but  western  silver  pine  and  sugar  pine  are 
essentially  the  same  in  quaUty  and  obtainable  in  large  sizes. 
Cannot  this  substitution  continue  indefinitely?  Prior  to  the 
Civil  War  the  New  England  and  Middle  states  were  the  principal 
producers  of  lumber.  Then  the  ascendancy  passed  to  the  Lake 
States  without  necessitating  any  great  economic  readjustment 
because  the  species  were  the  same.  It  was  simply  a  question 
of  paying  a  greater  freight  charge.  But  by  1900  the  southeast 
was  cutting  more  than  the  Lake  States  and  by  1909  nearly  four 
times  as  much.  This  meant  not  only  a  longer  haul  for  northern 
wood  users  but  entirely  different  species.  Hence,  serious  read- 
justments in  machinery,  methods,  costs  and  selling  prices  were 
made  necessary.  Now  the  southern  pine  region  is  being  forced 
into  second  place  by  diminishing  supplies  of  standing  timber  and 
the  Pacific  northwest  is  forging  ahead.  By  1925,  3000  sawmills 
will  have  to  shut  down  because  there  is  no  more  southern  yellow 
pine  for  them  to  cut.  Had  the  War  come  10  years  later  the 
lumber  for  cantonments,  ships  and  airplanes  would  have  had  to 
be  shipped  almost  entirely  from  the  Pacific  northwest.  What 
this  would  have  meant  in  delay  and  extra  freight  charges  is 
almost  incalculable.  Furthermore,  the  suppHes  in  Cahfornia, 
Oregon,  Washington  and  Alaska  are  not  unHmited.  The  large 
merchantable  timber  is  confined  to  a  rather  narrow  belt  along 
the  coast  where  the  influence  of  the  moist  winds  from  the 
Pacific  is  felt.  Behind  —  to  the  east  of  —  the  Cascades  and 
Sierras  there  is  no  good  timber  except  on  the  scattered  islands 
of  mountains  which  reach  up  far  enough  out  of  the  arid  plain 
below  to  get  some  rainfall.  The  Rocky  Mountain  region  has 
been  sarcastically  characterized  as"  fit  only  for  prairie  dogs, 
rattlesnakes  and  invahds."  Certainly  it  has  no  timber  to  spare 
for  export.  In  other  words,  the  states  of  New  Mexico,  Colorado, 
Wyoming,  Montana,  Idaho,  Utah,  Arizona  and  Nevada  need  all 
the  timber  they  have  for  their  own  domestic  development.     This 


STUMPAGE  PRICES  213 

also  applies  to  southern  California,  and  eastern  Oregon  and 
Washington.  So  it  sums  up  to  this:  the  supplies  of  virgin 
timber  are  virtually  exhausted  except  for  a  limited  area  on  the 
Pacific  Coast  making  up  less  than  5  per  cent  of  the  total  area 
of  the  United  States.  Nor  does  the  fact  that  some  of  the  biggest 
trees  and  the  heaviest  stands  in  the  world  are  located  here  offset 
the  fact  that  the  end  of  the  original  supply  of  timber  is  in  sight. 

What  rehef  can  be  expected  from  other  parts  of  the  world? 
England  has  long  since  given  up  producing  her  own  wood  supplies 
but  depends  upon  importing  them.  Why  cannot  we  do  likewise? 
This  seems  all  the  more  plausible  because  the  ordinary  description 
of  any  new  country,  and  of  many  that  have  a  long  history,  makes 
much  of  "  the  inexhaustible  forest  resources."  It  will  come  then 
as  something  of  a  shock  to  most  people  to  know  that  only  25  per 
cent  of  the  earth's  surface  is  capable  of  producing  trees  of  saw- 
timber  size.  The  rest  is  either  too  cold  or  too  dry.  Further- 
more the  area  of  good  softwood  timber  is  still  further  restricted. 
Practically  speaking,  there  is  no  good  softwood  out  of  the  northern 
hemisphere.  Siberia,  Prussia,  Scandinavia,  Canada,  and  the 
United  States  are  the  only  countries  that  even  had  large  bodies 
of  pine,  spruce  or  fir.  Tropical  forests  are  primarily  hardwood 
forests.  The  dipterocarps  will  only  be  used  for  the  local  softwood 
demand  and  they  will  have  to  make  slow  headway  against  the 
northern  softwoods  which  now  preempt  the  tropical  markets. 
Consequently  no  help  may  be  expected  from  Europe,  Asia, 
Australia,  Africa  or  South  America.  All  these  continents  have, 
in  fact,  been  drawing  upon  our  supplies  in  the  past  and  would 
Uke  to  continue  to  do  so.  In  other  words,  we  know  that  the 
original  world  supply  of  wood  will  not  last  indefinitely.  We  must 
either  use  substitutes  or  grow  more.  Entire  replacement  is 
neither  desirable  nor  necessary  so  that  the  cost  of  growing  it  will 
soon  determine  throughout  the  world  the  value  of  the  standing 
timber. 

WTiat  the  cost  of  production  will  be  is  dependent  upon  a  num- 
ber of  factors.  Most  important  of  all  is  the  length  of  time  re- 
quired to  produce  material  of  any  given  size.  Minimum  and 
average  figures  are  the  only  ones  worth  considering  because  they 


214  TIMBER  VALUATION 

will  determine  in  the  main.  It  is  conceivable  that  under 
untoward  climatic  conditions  cordwood  may  require  for  its  growth 
as  long  as  high  class  sawtimber,  but  the  places  that  can  produce 
cordwood  in  a  reasonable  period  are  going  to  set  the  price. 
Accordingly  the  following  figures  will  be  used: 

Years 

Cordwood  requires 25 

Boxboards  require 50 

Dimension  lumber  requires 75 

Lumber  for  "cutting  up"  requires 100 

Wide,  clear  lumber  requires 150 

To  illustrate  how  these  figures  were  derived  take  white  pine  as  an 
illustration  of  a  softwood  and  red  oak  for  the  hardwoods.  For 
the  periods  given  above  their  diameters  breast-high  are  as 
follows: 


25  years. 

50  years. 

75  years. 
100  years. 
150  years. 


Next  to  the  question  of  time  required  the  problem  of  determin- 
ing the  proper  interest  rate  is  the  most  vital.  It  is  also  the  most 
complex  and  difficult  to  reach  common  ground  on.  Where  most 
of  the  misunderstanding  comes  is  in  the  varying  conceptions  of 
what  constitutes  "  net  income."  The  ordinary  business  man 
takes  this  as  meaning  what  is  left  for  him  after  he  has  paid  his 
debts  and  frequently  he  forgets  such  untangible  Habilities  as 
interest  on  his  investment,  depreciation,  overhead  expenses,  etc. 
Consequently  he  assumes,  and  rightly,  that  he  must  make  from 
10  to  20  per  cent  per  annum  on  his  investment.  But  the  busi- 
ness of  growing  wood  differs  radically  from  the  ordinary  business 
of  small  capital  and  quick  turnover.  The  main  item  of  expense 
is  the  interest  on  the  capital  tied  up  in  the  land,  the  expense  of 
planting  or  regenerating  naturally,  and  the  annual  cost  of  ad- 
ministration and  protection.  While  none  of  these  is  large  in 
itself   the  interest  on  them  for  a  period  of  50  to   100  years 


STUMPAGE   PRICES  215 

amounts  to  a  large  sum.  In  other  words  forestry  is  one  of  the 
few  businesses  in  which  no  proper  idea  of  the  real  cost  of  doing 
business  may  be  obtained  unless  due  allowance  is  made  for 
interest  charges.  In  merchandising  and  manufacturing  on  the 
other  hand  the  main  items  of  expense  are  the  cash  outlays  for 
material  and  labor  and  interest  charges  play  a  relatively  unim- 
portant role.  Interest  is,  in  fact,  a  comparatively  modern  in- 
vention. Certainly  the  business  man  of  100  years  ago  worried 
little  about  interest,  overhead  charges,  and  depreciation.  For- 
estry, a  very  new  form  of  enterprise,  is  ultra  modern  in  this 
respect.  Consequently  it  must  know  what  the  net  return  will 
be  after  deducting  all  interest  and  charges  for  depreciation  and 
other  forms  of  overhead  expense.  The  only  kinds  of  business 
which  are  at  all  comparable  are  long  time,  conservative  invest- 
ments sought  by  those  who  wish  a  steady,  sure  income  over  a 
long  period  without  the  risk  and  bother  of  shifting  their  funds. 
The  rents  from  an  office  building  are  an  excellent  illustration. 
Built  to  last  for  50  to  100  years  without  radical  alteration  the 
main  items  of  expense  are  the  interest  on  the  original  cost  of 
construction,  the  constant  repairs  to  prevent  depreciation, 
yearly  taxes,  annual  insurance,  premiums  and  administrative 
costs.  Such  a'  building  gives  a  net  return,  when  all  these  items 
of  cost  have  been  deducted,  of  not  more  than  3  or  4  per  cent 
for  long  periods.  In  other  words  the  capital  is  as  safe  and  en- 
titled to  the  same  rate  of  return  as  funds  invested  in  a  savings 
bank.  Government  bonds  are,  perhaps,  an  even  better  illustra- 
tion of  what  net  income  actually  is.  The  recent  Liberty  Loans 
were  floated  at  3  per  cent  or  more  and  at  periods  could  be  bought 
at  enough  below  par  to  make  the  interest  rate  as  high  as  4  or  5  per 
cent.  But  no  one  expects  them  to  remain  at  par.  The  Civil 
War  loans  did  not  and  there  is  every  reason  to  predict  that  both 
the  Victory  Loan  and  the  three  Liberty  Loans  will  soon  be 
selling  for  enough  above  par  to  bring  their  net  return  down  to 
2  or  3  per  cent.  And  this  will  be  a  true  net  return  barring  per- 
haps the  cost  of  the  safe  deposit  box  in  which  they  are  kept. 
They  are  not  subject  to  taxes,  they  do  not  depreciate,  or  need 
repairs  or  insurance. 


2i6  TIMBER  VALUATION 

This  then  is  the  sort  of  income  which  is  meant  when  net  returns 
from  forest  land  are  referred  to.  All  costs  are  included  and 
interest  figured  on  them  from  the  time  the  trees  are  an  inch  high 
to  their  maturity.  Furthermore,  due  allowance  is  made  for  pos- 
sible loss  from  fire,  insects,  and  fungi,  and  such  items  as  are 
covered  by  insurance  and  depreciation  charges,  in  the  case  of 
an  ofl&ce  building.  It  seems  reasonable,  therefore,  to  use  a  low 
interest  rate  and  3  per  cent  has  been  chosen  for  the  calculations 
given  below. 

The  cost  of  the  land  has  been  set  at  $10  per  acre.  Only  such 
soils  should  be  devoted  to  tree  crops  as  are  unfit  for  tillage.  This 
means  steep,  rocky  or  sandy  land  not  good  enough  to  plow. 
Hence  a  low  figure  is  justifiable.  Even  in  England  with  its  ready 
markets  and  dense  population  the  Forestry  Sub-committee  of 
the  Reconstruction  Committee  estimated  in  19 18  that  land  could 
be  bought  for  reforestation  purposes  for  an  average  of  Si 5  per 
acre. 

For  securing  regeneration,  whether  natural  or  artificial,  the 
cost  is  estimated  at  $10  per  acre.  This  is  somewhat  low  for 
planting  on  steep  sites  liable  to  wash,  but  high  for  natural 
regeneration.  As  an  average  it  compares  very  favorably  with 
the  English  estimate  of  $17  per  acre  "  for  planting,  fencing,  drain- 
ing, beating  up,  etc.,"  where  no  natural  regeneration  could  be 
expected. 

This  same  report  gives  figures  for  the  annual  cost  of  protection 
and  administration  which  are  useful  as  a  guide.  For  $1.50  per 
acre  per  annum  it  is  expected  that  the  protective  and  administra- 
tive officers  may  be  paid  and  the  necessary  roads  and  buildings 
constructed  and  maintained.  Hence,  a  figure  of  $1  per  acre  for 
protection,  administration  and  taxes  seems  conservative  for 
American  conditions. 

The  total  cost  of  gro\Aing  timber  per  acre  summing  up  all  the 
items  enumerated  above  is  as  follows: 


STUMPAGE  PRICES 


217 


Years 

25 

SO 

75 

100 

150 

$20 
20 
36 

$43 
43 
112 

$91 
91 
272 

$192 
192 
607 

$842 

Regeneration  at  Sio  per  acre 

842 

Protection,  administration  and  taxes 

2766 

Total       .                                     

$76 

$198 

S454 

S991 

$4450 

To  determine  the  cost  per  M  a  uniform  production  of  500  board 
feet  per  acre  per  annum  has  been  assumed.  Hence,  the  following 
values  hold  at  various  age  periods. 

PerM 

25  years $6 

50  years 8 

75  years 12 

100  years 20 

1 50  years 60 

That  these  figures  are  not  far  out  of  the  way  is  shown  by  the 
fact  that  some  of  them  have  already  been  attained  in  parts  of  the 
United  States.  Three  dollars  a  cord  or  $6  per  M  is  not  an  un- 
usual stumpage  price  for  accessible  hardwood  cord  wood.  Box- 
board  material  is  selling  for  over  $8  per  M  in  all  the  more  accessible 
parts  of  the  second  growth  white  pine  region  of  the  northeast. 
In  fact  it  is  only  the  production  costs  of  the  larger  material 
which  have  not  already  been  equalled  or  surpassed.  So  far  the 
supply  of  large  virgin  timber  has  been  great  enough  to  supply  the 
demand  for  high  grade  lumber  at  much  less  than  it  will  cost  to 
grow  it.  Yet,  abroad,  many  stands  are  being  managed  on  rota- 
tion of  150  years  or  more  so  that  it  seems  only  a  matter  of  time 
before  the  United  States,  too,  will  be  doing  the  same  thing.  Or, 
stated  in  a  little  different  form,  our  stumpage  prices  for  cordwood 
and  the  lower  grades  of  lumber  have  already  gone  about  as  high 
as  they  will  in  the  older,  better  settled  parts  of  the  country.  High 
grade  softwood  and  hardwood  on  the  other  hand,  are  now  selling 
for  much  below  the  cost  of  production  and  will  advance  rapidly 
as  soon  as  the  accessible  virgin  supplies  are  depleted.  This 
statement  refers  simply  to  stumpage  prices,  not  to  lumber  prices. 
They  are  governed  by  entirely  different  laws.     Even  a  decided 


2l8  TIMBER  VALUATION 

advance  in  the  price  of  standing  timber  may  produce  only  a 
slight  increase  in  lumber  prices  because  the  cost  of  the  latter  is 
made  up  of  many  more  elements  than  that  of  standing  timber. 
Logging  costs,  milling,  and  freight  charges  are  the  important 
factors  and  far  outweigh  stumpage  prices  in  determining  the 
market  price  of  lumber. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
LAND   VALUATION 

While  the  value  of  the  land  itself  has  been  practically  negligible 
in  the  past  in  most  sales  of  timbered  lands,  it  is  daily  assuming  a 
more  important  role.  The  days  when  a  timberland  owner  could 
afford  to  throw  the  land  away  after  he  had  cut  off  the  merchant- 
able material  are  over.  The  land  itself,  even  tho  it  is  rough  and 
stony,  can  be  used  for  the  production  of  other  timber  crops  or 
selected  portions  devoted  to  tillage,  residence  purposes,  etc. 
Then,  too,  few  cuttings  absolutely  denude  the  ground.  There  is 
usually  some  young  growth  which  will  become  merchantable 
within  a  short  time.  For  these  reasons  every  timberland  owner 
is  more  or  less  interested  in  knowing  how  much  his  land  is  worth 
irrespective  of  the  merchantable  timber  on  it. 

The  first  step  is  to  determine  the  area.  Usually  this  is  done  in 
connection  with  the  estimate  of  the  timber  and  may  vary  in 
accuracy  from  the  roughest  kind  of  a  guess  to  an  accurate  transit 
survey.  Usually,  however,  a  method  midway  between  is  chosen. 
Transit  work  is  much  too  expensive  except  where  the  land  values 
exceed  $50  per  acre  which  is  seldom  the  case  with  woodland.  The 
compass  is  the  instrument  most  widely  used  in  woods  work 
because  it  is  rapid  and  accurate  enough  if  due  care  is  taken  in  its 
use.  Unlike  the  transit  the  adjustments  are  simple,  it  is  quickly 
set  up,  stands  hard  service,  and  does  not  require  much  brushing 
or  swamping.  The  commonest  source  of  error  is  local  attraction 
of  the  needle  but  this  can  be  guarded  against  by  back  sighting. 
All  in  all  it  is  the  ideal  instrument  for  the  woodsman.  For  the 
rapid  filling  in  of  details  a  hand  compass  is  sufficient,  in  deep 
soiled  woods  a  larger  instrument  mounted  on  a  Jacob's  staff  gives 
more  accurate  results,  while  on  roads  and  rocky  ground  a  tripod 
is  handy.  The  only  kind  of  woods  work  for  which  it  is  not 
adapted  is  rough  mountainous  regions  where  a  few  high  points 
command  the  territory.     There  some  form  of  planetable  cuts 

219 


220  LAND   VALUATION 

down  the  expense  because  a  network  of  triangulation  can  be  built 
up  which  will  locate  the  main  features  better  than  many  miles 
of  compass  traverse.  With  this  primary  control  as  a  basis  the 
details  can  be  readily  filled  in  with  the  compass. 

To  illustrate  the  methods  used  in  the  determination  of  the  area 
of  timbered  tracts  take  the  case  of  a  loo  acre  lot  as  the  first 
example.  The  simplest  way  to  handle  this  would  be  to  run  a 
base  fine  with  a  staff  compass  and  chain  along  one  side  or  on  a 
convenient  road  or  trail  crossing  it.  Then  the  estimate  strips 
could  be  run  at  regular  intervals  from  this  base  line  and  at  right 
angles  to  the  principal  streams.  By  recording  the  ridge  tops  and 
stream  crossings  on  the  estimate  strips  a  very  complete  map  may 
be  made  at  very  Httle  expense  in  addition  to  the  cost  of  the  esti- 
mate itself.  A  larger  tract  of  say  20,000  acres  would  be  handled 
in  exactly  the  same  way  except  that  greater  pains  should  be  taken 
to  make  sure  that  the  framework,  or  primary  control,  was  well 
fastened  together.  For  this  a  compass  would  not  be  accurate 
enough.  The  best  instrument  would  be  a  planetable  with  tele- 
scope alidade  so  that  either  triangulation  or  traverses  and  stadia 
measurement  could  be  employed. 

The  relative  accuracy  and  cost  of  the  various  methods  of  area 
determination  may  be  summed  up  as  follows: 


Transit  and  tape 

Transit  and  stadia 

Planetable  and  stadia 

Traverse  board  and  chain. 
Staff  compass  and  chain.  .  . 
Staff  compass  and  pacing. . 
Traverse  board  and  pacing 
Hand  compass  and  pacing  , 


Accuracy 

Acres  per 
man  hour 

Cost  per 
acre 

Per  cent 

Cents 

100 

6 

16 

98 

9 

12 

98 

12 

8 

95 

16 

6 

95 

16 

6 

92 

32 

3 

90 

64 

2 

90 

80 

i^ 

While  this  list  aims  at  completeness  in  enumerating  the  methods 
employed  in  woodland  area  determination  this  is  not  the  place 
to  describe  each  in  detail.  Surveying  manuals  like  that  of  Breed 
and  Hosmer  should  be  consulted  for  such  information.  It  is 
sufficient  for  the  immediate  purpose  to  give  some  notion  of  their 


LAND  VALUATION  221 

comparative  accuracy  and  cost.  A  tract  containing  640  acres 
was  taken  in  making  these  calculations  and  a  unit  cost  of  $1  per 
man  hour  assumed.  Hence  the  cost  per  acre  would  be  too  low 
for  smaller  tracts.  These  data  will,  of  course,  be  most  useful  in 
determining  which  method  will  give  sufi&ciently  accurate  results 
at  the  minimum  cost  under  any  given  set  of  conditions. 

While  the  determination  of  the  area  is  the  step  of  first  import- 
ance in  valuing  woodland  it  is  far  less  perplexing  than  the  deci- 
sion as  to  the  uses  to  which  the  land  can  most  profitably 
be  devoted.  The  possibiHty  of  tillage  is  constantly  recurring 
even  with  the  roughest  and  stoniest  tracts  because  tillage  gives 
the  highest  and  quickest  returns  and  it  is  the  use  which  has  the 
sanction  of  longest  usage.  All  land  can  be  tilled  if  enough  labor 
is  put  on  it  and  the  idea  that  there  are  soils  which  will  give  higher 
net  returns  when  used  in  other  ways  makes  headway  very  slowly. 
This  explains  why  the  lumberman  tries  first  of  all  to  dispose  of 
his  cutover  land  to  the  farmer.  Usually,  however,  there  are  only 
limited  areas  really  fit  for  tillage  in  any  large  tract  of  timber. 
This  is  more  particularly  the  case  with  the  areas  now  covered  with 
virgin  timber,  restricted  as  they  are  to  the  mountain  regions  and 
overflow  lands.  Few  people  realize  how  much  good  labor  has 
been  thrown  away  clearing  up  land  which  is  really  unfit  for  tillage. 
The  abandoned  farms  of  New  England  and  the  "  sand  farms  " 
of  the  Lake  States  cutover  areas  are  cases  in  point.  This  does 
not  mean,  of  course,  that  there  are  not  level  stretches  reasonably 
free  from  stones  even  in  the  mountains  which  cannot  be  profitably 
tilled.  It  means  simply  that  no  area  can  be  kept  in  good  cultiva- 
tion unless  it  has  more  good  soil  than  rocks  and  is  not  so  steep 
that  it  wiU  wash.  Given  these  two  fundamentals  there  are  three 
other  criteria  by  which  it  must  be  judged : 

1 .  Is  it  subject  to  destructive  overflow? 

2.  Has  it  good  frost  drainage? 

3.  Are  markets  accessible? 

As  has  already  been  pointed  out  the  overflow  lands  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi are  much  more  profitable  under  tillage  than  those  of  the 
southeastern  Atlantic  States  because  the  floods  in  the  latter  region 
come  in  the  middle  of  the  growing  season.     It  is  rather  the  time 


222  LAND   VALUATION 

of  flood  than  the  actual  height  of  the  water  that  must  be  guarded 
against.  Frost  drainage  is  an  exceedingly  important  point. 
Many  mountain  meadows  could  be  made  into  wonderful  garden 
spots  were  it  not  for  the  cold  air  which  pours  into  them.  But 
even  granted  that  all  other  factors  are  favorable  no  land  will  be 
permanently  remunerative  under  tillage  unless  it  has  ready  access 
to  markets.  How  near  those  markets  must  be  and  how  smooth 
the  intervening  roads  depends  upon  the  products  to  be  marketed. 
Cattle,  for  example,  can  be  driven  for  distances  and  over  roads 
that  would  be  prohibitive  for  apples.  All  in  all  the  experience  in 
turning  cutover  land  into  farms  has  been  so  disappointing  that 
the  burden  of  proof  should  always  be  upon  the  would-be  farmer 
to  show  that  his  use  is  the  highest.  In  this  connection  it  must 
be  remembered  that  the  returns  from  tillage  are  not  so  great  as 
they  are  commonly  painted  by  the  real  estate  agent.  Over  a 
period  of  25  years  or  more  there  are  very  few  farms  that  give  a 
net  return  of  over  5  per  cent.  In  fact  the  long  time  records  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  show  that  3  per  cent  is  the  average 
net  income  from  farm  land.  The  following  figures  are  taken 
from  such  long  time  averages  and  give  the  net  returns  for  some  of 
the  principal  farm  crops: 


Per  acre  per 

annum 

Com 

$7           Cotton 

10 

Wheat 

6            Potatoes 

7 

Oats 

4            Hay 

4 

As  further  substantiating  this  Bulletin  645,  1914,  shows  that  the 
average  gross  farm  value  of  the  13  principal  crops  of  the  United 
States  was  $16  an  acre.  This  figure  also  holds  good  for  Germany 
during  the  period  from  1909  to  1913,  while  the  net  income  was 
not  quite  $6  per  acre.* 

If,  however,  there  is  a  comparatively  small  percentage  of  the 
land  in  forested  areas  fit  for  tillage  the  other  agricultural  use  of 
pasturage  needs  to  be  considered  even  more  fully.  Here  again 
there  is  an  inherited  prejudice  to  combat.  Our  ancestors  de- 
pended in  such  large  measure  upon  grazing  for  their  meat,  milk 
and  hides  that  one  naturally  thinks  of  it  as  a  remunerative  way 


LAND  VALUATION  223 

to  use  land  which  is  too  rough  for  tillage.  But  the  fundamental 
difficulty  is  that  unless  land  is  tilled  at  least  occasionally  it 
ceases  to  afford  good  grazing.  It  is  only  level  land  which  has 
been  comparatively  recently  turned  over  that  will  keep  a  cow 
per  acre  during  the  summer  months.  There  must  be  no  bare 
spots,  stony  patches,  weed  growth,  or  brush.  But  such  land 
yields  better  under  tillage  so  that  the  pasture  lands  are  com- 
monly those  which  are  too  rough,  stony  or  inaccessible  to  plow 
economically.  Such  fields  require  from  5  to  40  acres  per  cow 
per  season  depending  upon  the  chmatic  conditions.  Hence  at 
$2  per  cow  per  month  the  gross  return  will  be  from  $2  per  acre 
per  annum  to  25  cents.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  Gavernment  is 
getting  less  than  10  cents  per  acre,  gross,  for  its  western  range 
lands.  Perhaps  it  is  not  fair  to  bring  these  arid  lands  into  the 
argument  because  forest  land  has  invariably  a  moister  cHmate. 
But  it  must  be  remembered  that  where  trees  grow  well  they 
crowd  out  grass  so  that  even  in  the  moist  parts  of  the  United 
States  no  pasture  takes  care  of  itself  but  becomes  less  and  less 
remunerative  every  year  unless  time  and  money  are  spent  keep- 
ing it  up.  In  other  words  pasturing  is  an  extensive  use  of  land 
which  seldom  gives  a  net  return  of  more  than  $1  per  acre  per 
annum. 

On  every  tract  there  are  small  areas  which  have  special  value 
for  store,  residence  or  water  power  purposes.  Ideally,  of  course, 
these  should  be  developed  but  it  often  happens  that  their  fullest 
expansion  calls  for  divided  ownership  or  authority  in  a  way  that 
is  sometimes  difficult  to  manage.  For  example,  a  mountain  lake 
may  offer  an  ideal  location  for  a  summer  hotel  and  be  also  valuable 
for  hydroelectric  water  storage  and  log  driving.  Unless  there  is 
cordial  cooperation  among  the  interests  concerned  clashes  of 
authority  may  arise.  An  unusually  wise  manager  would  be 
required  to  secure  the  necessary  technical  knowledge  and  yet 
coordinate  the  various  activities. 

The  various  points  which  need  consideration  with  reference  to 
the  use  of  land  for  store,  residence,  hotel  or  hydroelectric  purposes 
are  itemized  in  "  The  Outline  for  the  Examination  of  a  Timber 
*  Forest  Valuation.     F.  Roth.     1916. 


224  LAND   VALUATION 

Tract  "  given  in  the  appendix.  Those  wishing  to  make  such  an 
examination  or  judge  the  quality  of  a  report  upon  a  tract  are 
advised  to  consult  it. 

The  main  points  witn  reference  to  mineral  deposits  that  can 
be  secured  in  a  preliminary  examination  are  also  given  in  this 
outline.  Of  course,  no  forester  should  presume  to  make  a  final 
examination  of  coal,  iron  or  other  mineral  deposits  without  call- 
ing in  expert  advice.  But  on  the  other  hand  the  work  of  the  min- 
ing expert  can  be  greatly  faciHtated  if  he  can  have  a  good  map  of 
the  tract  and  certain  general  information  in  regard  to  it  before 
starting  his  field  work.  These  data  the  forester's  examination 
can  secure  at  practically  no  additional  expense. 

It  is  in  general  axiomatic  that  the  best  use  to  which  timberland 
can  be  devoted  is  the  production  of  crops  of  lumber  or  cordwood. 
While  whatever  is,  is  not  always  right,  still  the  mere  fact  that  a 
tract  is  forested  indicates  that  there  has  been  no  urgent  demand 
for  it  for  agriculture,  mining,  etc.  Furthermore,  a  change  in 
kind  of  product  must  involve  a  revolution  in  the  habits  of  the 
people  who  have  been  developing  the  tract  and  totally  different 
kinds  of  technical  skill  in  its  administration.  In  other  words,  the 
presumption  is  always  strong  that  a  piece  of  woodland  has  been 
found  by  long  experimentation  to  yield  its  highest  returns  in  wood 
products  or  the  by-product  advantages  derived  from  wooded 
areas.  This  is  the  task  of  the  forester  —  to  make  over  wild 
unregulated  woods  into  forests  giving  their  highest  possible 
returns  in  lumber,  cordwood,  watershed  protection  and  aesthetic 
values. 

But  naturally  forestry  is  more  profitable  under  some  condi- 
tions than  others  so  that  the  next  step  is  to  examine  briefly  what 
factors  determine  the  income  from  forests  and  how  profitable  the 
various  types  of  woodland  in  the  United  States  and  its  outlying 
possessions  may  be  reasonably  expected  to  become  when  devoted 
to  growing  forests.  As  has  already  been  explained  in  the  chapter 
on  Timber  Valuation  the  main  item  in  the  cost  of  producing  tim- 
ber is  not  the  labor  or  materials  involved  but  the  interest  on 
the  capital  invested  in  the  land  and  first  cost  of  regeneration. 
It  becomes  necessary,  therefore,  to  assume   at   the   start   an 


LAND  VALUATION  22$ 

interest  rate.  The  reasons  for  selecting  3  per  cent  have 
already  been  fully  discussed,  so  that  they  need  not  be  amplified 
here.  Second  in  importance  is  the  cost  of  the  land  itself  and  three 
values  have  been  chosen,  $5,  $10  and  $15  per  acre,  for  this  dis- 
cussion. The  cost  of  regeneration  is  assumed  to  be  $10  per  acre 
and  the  annual  charges  for  administration  and  protection,  $1  per 
acre.  Rotations  of  50,  100  and  150  years  will  be  considered  and 
final  yields  of  250,  500  and  1000  board  feet  per  acre  per  annum. 
A  uniform  stumpage  price  of  $10  per  M  has  been  used  in  the  cal- 
culations because  it  seems  reasonable  to  assume  that  this  will  be 
an  average  figure  for  all  species  by  the  end  of  a  rotation  of  50 
years.  Stumpage  prices  in  the  United  States  range  from  $1  to 
$20  per  M  with  the  average  considerably  under  $10  but  we  are 
fast  approaching  European  conditions  where  even  low  grade  soft- 
wood is  bringing  $10  per  M  and  high  grade  hardwood  four  or 
five  times  that.  In  this  connection  it  is  interesting  to  note  that 
Kellogg  and  Zeigler  came  to  the  conclusion  in  191 1  after  a  study 
of  American  growth  and  market  conditions  that  $10  per  M  was 
a  fair  estimate  of  the  average  cost  of  timber  production.  No 
allowance  was  made  for  either  returns  from  thinnings  or  accel- 
erated growth  as  a  result  of  such  thinning  in  order  to  have  an 
ample  margin  with  which  to  offset  possible  losses  from  fire,  insects 
and  fungi.  That  this  margin  is  more  than  sufficient  will  appear 
clearly  when  it  is  considered  that  annual  charges  of  50  cents  per 
acre  are  allowed  for  protection  and  administration.  While  this 
is  not  large  as  measured  by  European  standards  it  is  much  greater 
than  has  yet  been  expended  over  any  considerable  area  in  the 
United  States.  The  National  Forests,  for  exarnple,  are  admin- 
istered and  protected  for  less  than  five  cents  per  acre,  but  the 
Forest  Service  appropriation  is  so  inadequate  that  only  the 
merest  beginning  has  been  made. 

Three  yields  have  been  used,  250,  500  and  1000  board  feet  per 
annum.  The  first  gives  negative  values  even  under  the  most 
favorable  conditions  so  that  the  following  types  may  be  ruled  out 
at  once  as  unremunerative  from  the  standpoint  of  timber  produc- 
tion: 


2  26  LAND  VALUATION 

Northern  swamp  type. 

Southeastern  ridge  type. 

Chapparal  type. 

Pinon- juniper  type. 

Western  yellow  pine  on  semi-arid  sites. 

While  these  types  are  too  slow  growing  to  make  it  worth  while  to 
raise  timber  on  them  they  usually  have  secondary  uses  which 
justify  their  being  kept  wooded. 

An  average  yield  of  500  board  feet  per  annum  includes  a  larger 
number  of  types.  While  this  may  seldom  be  found  under  virgin 
conditions  in  the  following  types  it  is  obtainable  under  manage- 
ment: 

Northern  spruce. 

Northern  hardwoods. 

Cove. 

Slope. 

Southern  pine. 

Western  yellow  pine  on  moist  sites. 

Lodgepole  pine. 

Engelmann  spruce. 

Sugar  pine. 

These  lands  wiU  yield  good  returns  with  rotations  of  less  than 
100  years.  In  other  words,  they  can  be  profitably  employed  for 
the  production  of  ties,  pulpwood  and  boxboards  but  they  will  not 
grow  large  sized  sawtimber. 

In  fact  it  is  gnly  the  types  of  timberland  which  will  yield  at 
the  rate  of  1000  board  feet  per  acre  per  annum  on  which  large  sized 
sawtimber  may  be  profitably  grown.  Fortunately  these  are 
scattered  rather  evenly  thruout  the  United  States.  In  the  north- 
east there  is  the  white  pine  type.  The  southeast  has  the  overflow 
bottomlands.  Only  the  Rocky  Mountain  region  has  too  severe  a 
cHmate  to  permit  such  rapid  growth.  In  the  Pacific  northwest 
there  are  the  silver  pine,  cedar  flat,  Douglas  fir,  and  redwood 
types. 

The  length  of  rotation  is  an  exceedingly  important  item  be- 


LAND  VALUATION  227 

cause  it  not  only  sets  the  period  of  interest  accumulation  but 
determines  the  final  yield.  Generally  speaking  it  takes  about 
50  years  under  favorable  conditions  to  grow  boxboards,  pulp- 
wood  and  railway  ties,  100  years  to  produce  ordinary  sawtimber, 
and  150  to  200  years  are  required  for  extra  wide  clear  finishing 
lumber.  Roth  gives  the  following  rotations  for  the  principal 
European  species: 

Pine  and  spruce 80  to  100  years  in  public  forests. 

Pine  and  spruce 60  to    80  years  in  private  forests. 

Balsam 100  years 

Beech 100  to  120     " 

Oak 150  to  200     " 

It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  types  which  cannot  produce  rail- 
way ties  at  least  in  100  years  are  hopelessly  handicapped.  Con- 
sequently the  slower  growing  types  such  as  the  northern  swamps, 
southern  ridges,  western  yellow  pine  on  semi-arid  sites,  chapparal 
and  pinon-juniper  types  cannot  justify  themselves  as  wood  pro- 
ducers no  matter  how  long  the  rotation.  Conversely,  the  types 
with  rapid  annual  growth  are  not  only  the  most  productive  for 
short  rotations  but  are  also  the  only  ones  that  will  pay  dividends 
from  timber  production  alone  if  left  for  over  100  years. 

Land  values  in  forestry  must  obviously  be  low.  Interest  must 
run  for  long  periods  and  high  priced  land  would  soon  accumulate 
amounts  of  interest  which  even  the  most  rapid  growth  could  not 
offset.  Furthermore  it  is  fundamental  that  forests  should  be 
restricted  to  the  low  priced,  stony,  rough  lands  unfit  for  tillage. 
Therefore,  the  values  used,  $5,  $10  and  $15,  err  on  the  side  of  con- 
servatism rather  than  being  too  low.  In  this  connection  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  $15  per  acre  is  the  average  value  at  which 
the  British  Reforestation  Committee  estimate  —  1918  —  they 
can  secure  land  in  the  British  Isles.  The  purchases  by  the  Federal 
Government  under  the  Weeks  Law  have  never  exceeded  $5  an 
acre  for  the  land  itself.  The  land  value  and  the  compound 
interest  which  it  accumulates  are  not  determining  factors  in 
deciding  where  forestry  may  be  profitably  practised.  Any  low 
priced  land  which  has  favorable  climatic  and  soil  conditions  for 
rapid  growth  will  give  good  returns  if  forested. 


228  LAND   VALUATION 

The  cost  of  regeneration  is  like  the  value  of  the  land,  an  im- 
portant but  not  a  determining  factor.  It  must  be  considered  not 
so  much  on  account  of  the  first  cost  as  by  reason  of  the  accumu- 
lated interest  in  a  long  rotation.  Naturally  it  varies  within  wide 
limits.  Where  artificial  regeneration  is  necessary  the  cost  per 
acre  may  easily  exceed  $15,  but  there  are  many,  many  instances 
in  which  natural  regeneration  may  be  rehed  upon  for  a  satisfac- 
tory stand  at  a  cost  much  less  than  would  be  required  if  the  young 
trees  were  sown  or  planted.  Ten  dollars  an  acre,  before  the 
Great  War,  was  an  average  figure  for  the  cost  of  planting  and  it 
has  been  used  in  these  calculations  since  it  represents  very  fairly 
a  mean  between  the  sites  where  natural  seeding  will  give  good 
results  and  those  less  favorable  sites  which  can  only  be  regen- 
erated artificially.  It  is  certainly  fair  to  say  that  $10  an  acre 
will  secure  a  satisfactory  reproduction  in  all  stands  where  the 
climatic  conditions  are  at  all  favorable  to  forest  growth. 

Taking  all  the  factors  into  consideration,  both  costs  and 
receipts,  it  is  evident  that  what  determines  the  profit  from  forest 
investments  is  the  yield.  In  other  words,  types  in  which  the 
yield  is  below  500  board  feet  per  acre  cannot  be  expected  to  be 
kept  forested  unless  the  tree  growth  is  valuable  for  other  purposes 
than  wood  production.  Or  expressed  differently,  our  sawtimber 
will  in  the  future  be  produced  in  the  following  types: 

White  pine. 

Southern  bottomlands  * 

Silver  pine. 

Redwood. 

Douglas  fir. 

Cedar  flats. 

For  the  production  of  ties,  pulpwood  and  boxboards  the  following 
types  in  addition  to  those  listed  above  are  suitable  under  favor- 
able conditions: 

Northern  hardwood. 

Northern  spruce. 

Southern  pine. 

Southern  Appalachian  coves. 


LAND  VALUATION  229 

Southern  Appalachian  slopes. 
Western  yellow  pine  on  moist  sites. 
Lodgepole  pine. 
Engehnann  spruce. 
Sugar  pine. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  these  lists  do  not  make  any  reference  to  the 
raising  of  large  sized  hardwoods.  It  is  true  that  wide,  clear 
boards  of  oak,  ash,  cherry,  etc.,  cannot  be  grown  profitably  with 
a  stumpage  price  of  $10  per  M.  What  has  happened  in  Europe 
and  will  unquestionably  happen  here  is  that  the  stumpage  prices 
of  high  grade  hardwood  will  go  above  $10.  For  200  year  oak  $50 
per  M  has  been  paid  in  Germany. 


CHAPTER  XXni 
TITLES 

There  are  certain  legal  difficulties  in  securing  sound  titles  to 
woodland  tracts  which  make  the  subject  of  special  interest  to  all 
woodland  owners,  present  and  prospective.  Briefly  stated  these 
are  due  to  two  factors.  In  the  first  place  woodlands  in  the 
United  States  have  not  been  of  great  value  in  the  past  so  that 
their  owners  have  neglected  to  have  them  properly  marked  and 
described.  In  the  second  place,  and  of  even  more  importance, 
the  definition  of  acts  of  possession  is  vague  so  that  there  is  no 
general  agreement  as  to  what  an  owner  must  have  done  to  prove 
conclusively  that  he  owns  a  tract. 

A  traet  of  land  may  be  marked  in  various  ways.  The  com- 
monest method  is  by  fences,  either  of  rails,  stones  or  wire.  But 
large  tracts  of  woodland  are  seldom  fenced  on  account  of  the 
expense  of  fencing  as  compared  with  the  advantages  of  preventing 
grazing.  It  is  usually  cheaper  in  a  woodland  grazing  country  to 
fence  the  relatively  small  areas  of  tilled  and  cleared  land  and  let 
the  stock  roam  at  wiU.  Should  an  owner  desire  to  prevent  graz- 
ing trespass  in  a  community  of  this  kind  the  entire  burden  of 
such  an  innovation  would  be  upon  him.  His  neighbors  -would 
give  him  neither  legal  protection  nor  sympathy.  Such  primitive 
communities  think  of  the  woods  first  of  all  as  a  common  pasturing 
ground  and  cannot  be  expected  to  have  developed  a  sense  of  pri- 
vate property  rights  in  timberland.  In  fact  the  use  of  woodland 
for  forest  production  is  much  more  recent  historically  than  the 
pasturage  use  and  runs  counter  therefore  to  many  inherited  preju- 
dices dating  back  to  the  time  when  the  woodlands  were  used  in 
common  for  grazing  and  what  httle  timber  and  firewood  a  primi- 
tive community  needs.  Even  the  development  of  private  rights 
to  the  timber  does  not  break  down  the  feeHng  of  common  owner- 
ship in  pasturage.     Consequently,  it  is  rare  that  woodlands  are 


TITLES  231 

marked  except  by  monuments  at  the  lot  corners  and  blazed  lines 
in  between  the  corners  even  aside  from  the  expense  of  fencing. 
Unfortunately,  too,  these  monuments  are  often  of  the  flimsiest 
character  and  the  blazes  carelessly  done  and  only  renewed  at 
rare  intervals. 

As  a  result  of  the  low  regard  for  private  mterests  in  woodland 
the  old  descriptions  are  crude  and  hazy  in  the  extreme.  A  grant 
of  thousands  of  acres  may  be  tied  to  "  a  white  oak  post  situated 
on  the  ridge  between  "  two  creeks.  When  the  post  rots  the  tract 
is  suspended  in  air.  This  has  actually  happened  in  many  cases. 
For  example,  the  Government's  title  to  the  famous  Olmsted 
tract  in  North  CaroUna  hung  upon  the  location  of  a  stake  all 
traces  of  which  had  disappeared  in  40  years.  The  testimony  of 
local  inhabitants  as  to  where  they  had  heard  that  it  had  been  was 
the  best  evidence  that  could  be  found  to  relocate  the  starting 
point.  Courses,  too,  may  be  as  vague.  Even  when  stated  in 
degrees,  and  not  vaguely  as  "  westerly,  northerly,"  etc.,  there  is 
often  grave  reason  for  questioning  the  accuracy  of  the  instrument 
used  or  the  skill  of  the  surveyor.  Open  sight  staff  compasses  are 
the  most  accurate  instruments  usually  employed  in  such  work  so 
that  the  declination  and  local  attraction  must  always  be  con- 
sidered in  determining  the  present  bearing  from  an  old  reading. 
What  still  further  complicates  the  retracing  of  old  descriptions  is 
that  the  distances  are  frequently  either  vague  or  inaccurate,  i.e., 
they  may  be  given  as  approximately  a  fraction  of  a  mile,  measured 
on  the  surface  without  allowance  for  slope,  or  so  carelessly  done 
that  large  errors  have  been  made.  As  a  consequence  the  areas 
given  for  tracts  of  rough  woodland  are  seldom  within  10  per  cent, 
always  the  sa\'ing  phrase  "  more  or  less,"  is  added  in  stating  the 
acreage.  In  fairness  to  the  old  surveyors  it  should,  however,  be 
said  that  the  areas  usually  overrun.  In  other  words,  their  esti- 
mates, and  they  are  frequently  Httle  less,  have  the  virtue  of  con- 
servatism. 

Nothing  that  has  so  far  been  said  should  be  construed  as  advis- 
ing undue  accuracy  in  woodland  surveying.  The  values  per  acre 
do  not  justify  city  survey  methods.  All  that  is  needed  is  reason- 
able dehniteness  in  locating  tie  points,  and  reasonable  accuracy 


232 


TITLES 


in  measuring  angles  and  distances.  To  make  this  more  concrete 
every  survey  should  be  tied  to  a  United  States  Geological  Survey 
or  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey  bench  mark,  a 
General  Land  Office  section  corner,  or  a  railroad,  stream,  or  road 
crossing.  Practically  speaking  these  are  the  only  points  which 
are  located  with  sufficient  definiteness.  As  for  the  measurement 
of  angles  the  compass  is  and  will  remain  the  most  convenient 
instrument  for  woods  work.  It  simply  needs  to  be  used  with 
a  recognition  of  its  limitations.  Distances  may  be  measured  by 
tape,  stadia,  chain  or  pacing,  but  they  should  always  be  reduced 
to  the  horizontal  and  the  method  employed  stated.  The  map 
resulting  from  such  field  work  should  show  all  the  principal 
streams,  lakes,  ponds,  roads,  trails  and  property  lines.  Prefer- 
ably it  should  also  show  the  topography  by  contours.  It  is  a 
great  help,  for  example,  to  know  what  the  slope  is  like  near  an 
important  corner  for  which  one  is  searching. 

The  cost  of  such  mapping  varies,  naturally,  with  the  methods 
employed.  The  following  data  will  be  helpful  in  estimating  such 
costs: 


Method 

No.  in 
crew 

Cost  of  field  work. 

Average  daily 

wage  including 

board 

Cost 

Miles  , 

in 

8  hours 

Cost 
per 
mile 

1.  Transit  and  tape 

2.  Transit  and  stadia 

3.  Compass  and  chain 

4.  Compass  and  pacing .... 

7 
5 
4 
2 

Per  Day 

$4 

4 

»28 

22 
14 
8 

2 

3 
6 
8 

$14 

73 

23 

I 

The  office  work  —  drafting  and  area  computation  —  would  not 
be  essentially  different  for  the  various  methods  and  ought  not  to 
exceed  one  cent  per  acre. 

Expressed  on  an  acreage  basis  the  cost  of  such  boundary  sur- 
veys vary  from  one  cent  to  one  dollar  per  acre.  The  Federal 
Forest  Service  has  been  making  transit  and  tape  surveys  of  the 
lands  purchased  under  the  provisions  of  the  Weeks  Law  for  23 
cents  per  acre  in  1918  including  the  office  work  of  map  prepara- 
tion, area  computation  by  latitudes  and  departures,  and  con- 
siderable legal  investigation  necessary  to  the  determination  of  the 
location  of  the  tracts  to  be  surveyed. 


TITLES  233 

As  already  stated  the  question  of  determining  the  rightful 
claimant  to  a  piece  of  woodland  is  much  more  difl&cult  than  in 
the  case  of  farmland.  A  man  who  owns  a  farm  either  lives  on  it, 
rents  it  or  manages  it  thru  an  agent.  He  must  fence  it,  cultivate 
it  and  keep  the  buildings  in  repair.  It  is  a  matter  of  common 
knowledge  who  the  real  owner  is.  None  of  these  acts  of  possession 
are  necessary  in  the  case  of  woodland.  Even  paying  the  taxes 
and  cutting  the  timber  have  been  held  to  be  no  sure  indication 
of  ownership.  Nor  should  they  be  because  many  lots  have  been 
cut  illegally  and  taxes  have  been  paid  in  many  cases  merely  to 
acquire  color  of  title.  For  example,  there  have  been  a  number  of 
notorious  cases  of  woodland  theft  in  northern  New  England  in 
which  the  title  of  the  illegal  claimant  was  based  on  a  quit  claim 
deed  supported  by  tax  receipts.  The  quit  claim  deeds  were 
secured  at  a  nominal  figure  from  persons  who  had  never  seen  the 
land,  much  less  owned  it.  In  order  to  cover  up  all  traces  of  wrong 
doing  and  weaken  the  case  of  the  rightful  claimants  the  county 
records  were  often  wilfully  destroyed.  The  point  of  all  this  is, 
of  course,  that  acts  of  possession  have  nowhere  near  the  same 
force  with  reference  to  woodland  as  with  other  forms  of  real  estate. 
It  is,  therefore,  all  the  more  necessary  for  the  woodland  owner  to 
make  sure  that  every  proper  act  of  possession  is  carefully  put  on 
record.  This  would  mean  filing  a  careful  description  and  map 
in  the  County  Clerk's  Office,  renewing  the  monuments  and 
blazes,  keeping  up  taxes,  and  curbing  all  forms  of  trespass. 

The  mere  fact  that  there  is  uncertainty  as  to  what  constitutes 
an  "  act  of  possession  "  with  reference  to  woodland  makes  a  title 
search  all  the  more  necessary.  Both  the  owner  and  prospective 
purchaser  need  to  know  whether  there  are  rival  claimants,  and 
this  only  a  thoro  search  of  the  local  legal  records  will  give.  The 
Department  of  Agriculture  in  its  investigations  of  the  titles  offered 
for  purchase  under  the  provisions  of  the  Weeks  Law  has  set  a 
standard  for  such  work.  They  try  to  secure  for  each  deed  or 
mortgage  the  following  information: 

1.  Kind  of  conveyance,  date,  date  and  place  recorded  and 

volume  and  page. 

2.  Name  and  address  of  vendor. 


234  TITLES 


3- 

Name  and  address  of  vendee. 

4. 

Consideration. 

5- 

Description. 

6. 

Reservations  and  limitations. 

7- 

Habendum. 

8. 

Covenants. 

9- 

Dower,  curtesy  and  homestead  rights 

10. 

Signature. 

II. 

Witnesses. 

12. 

Acknowledgment. 

The  marital  status  of  the  grantor  should  be  ascertained  where 
the  state  laws  make  it  of  material  weight.  For  example,  in  most 
states  no  married  man  may  give  a  valid  deed  without  being 
joined  therein  by  his  wife.  Deeds  are,  of  course,  filed  in  the 
County  Recorder's  Office  at  the  county  seat. 

The  records  of  the  probate  court  are  also  kept  in  the  county 
court  house,  usually  in  conjunction  with  the  deeds.  These 
records  differ  somewhat  depending  upon  whether  the  owner  of 
land  made  his  own  will  or  died  intestate.  In  the  former  case  the 
following  points  should  be  covered  in  the  title  search: 

1.  Execution  of  the  will. 

2.  Names  of  witnesses. 

3.  Exact  description  of  property  devised. 

4.  Name  of  each  devisee. 

5.  Date  and  location  of  probate. 

6.  Notice  to  creditors  and  other  interested  parties. 

7.  Proof  of  service. 

8.  Final  disposition  of  property. 

9.  Discharge  of  administrator. 

Where  no  will  was  made  and  the  probate  court  appointed  an 
administrator  the  essential  points  to  be  noted  are: 

1.  Appointment  and  quaUfications  of  administrator. 

2.  Names  of  surviving  relatives. 

3.  Notice  to  creditors. 

4.  Date  and  proof  of  service. 


TITLES  235 

5.  Application  for  order  of  sale  with  date. 

6.  CoruEirmation  of  sale  with  date. 

7.  Discharge  of  administrator. 

Partition  of  estates  by  guardians  or  trustees  present  certain 
special  points.     These  are  hsted  below: 

1.  Location  (venue). 

2.  Names  of  parties. 

3.  Property  described  in  petition. 

4.  Notice  and  proof  of  service. 

5.  Order  of  reference  and  report. 

6.  Order  of  disposition. 

7.  Final  decree. 

Condemnation  proceedings  form  part  of  the  regular  court 
records  but  the  county  recorder  will  be  able  to  give  anyone  inter- 
ested access  to  the  proper  papers.  The  following  points  should 
be  looked  up: 

1.  Location  of  proceedings  (venue). 

2.  Name  of  parties. 

3.  Date  of  declaration  or  complaint. 

4.  Cause  of  action. 

5.  Date  of  service  on  defendant  and  kind  of  service. 

6.  Date  of  answer  and  allegations  therein. 

7.  Material  orders  of  court  and  final  decree,  -with  dates. 

8.  Final  disposition  of  case,  with  date. 

Data  in  regard  to  forced  sales  is  kept  by  different  officials  in 
different  parts  of  the  country.  In  New  England  where  the  town 
is  the  unit  of  government  the  town  clerk  keeps  the  records  of  tax 
sales.  In  the  other  thirteen  original  states  the  county  sheriff 
handles  such  executions  while  the  United  States  Land  Commis- 
sioner is  the  custodian  of  tax  sale  data  in  the  land  grant  states. 

The  final  report,  or  abstract  of  title,  should  consist  of  a  history 
of  the  title  including  a  complete  list  of  all  o\vners  or  claimants  for 
the  period  covered  together  with  the  opinion  of  the  examining 
attorney  as  to  its  validity.     It  would  naturally  be  accompanied 


236  TITLES 

by  copies  of  all  the  papers  examined  in  working  up  the  case  and 
maps  which  show  not  only  the  present  boundaries  of  the  tract 
but  also  the  lots  and  grants  of  which  it  is  composed. 

Anyone  who  has  followed  the  discussion  of  titles  so  far  must 
have  been  impressed  with  the  great  amount  of  local  knowledge 
required.  For  this  reason  it  is  better  to  employ  local  attorneys 
and  surveyors  where  they  can  be  trusted  to  do  the  work  with 
suf&cient  accuracy.  Unfortunately,  however,  they  are  too  often 
poorly  trained  so  that  a  more  skilled  man  must  be  employed  to 
superintend  their  efforts.  But  local  knowledge  of  the  families, 
grants,  lot  lines  and  topography  must  be  secured  at  whatever 
cost.  The  Federal  Government  has  adopted  the  practice  of  secur- 
ing trained  men  by  a  civil  service  examination  and  then  sending 
them  directly  out  into  the  field  to  acquire  local  color. 

By  all  odds  the  most  difficult  titles  to  investigate  are  those  of 
lands  lying  in  the  thirteen  original  states.  Not  only  are  these 
states  older  so  that  there  have  been  a  greater  number  of  property 
transfers  but,  worst  of  all,  the  land  subdivisions  are  poorly 
marked.  Where  the  section  a  mile  square  is  the  unit  and  the 
land  is  divided  into  townships  the  process  of  description  and 
identification  is  very  much  simplified.  Compare,  for  example, 
the  process  of  finding  the  S  W  $  Sec  i5,Ti4NRi6W,  Montana 
Principal  Meridian,  with  a  tract  160  acres  in  extent  and  forming 
a  part  of  a  grant  whose  initial  point  estabhshed  100  years  ago  is 
a  stake  and  stones  on  a  ridge  between  two  obscure  creeks.  For- 
tunately, even  some  of  the  original  thirteen  states  adopted  a 
lot  system.  This  helps  immensely  even  tho  there  may  be  no 
uniformity  between  states  or  parts  of  the  same  state  as  to  the 
size  of  the  lots  and  the  direction  of  their  boundary  lines.  But 
where  the  state  land  departments  adopted  a  policy  of  selling  any 
sized  grant  to  any  purchaser  and  put  entirely  upon  him  the  bur- 
den of  finding  out  whether  there  was  any  such  unclaimed  land, 
inextricable  confusion  arose.  As  has  already  been  pointed  out 
the  land  grants  in  certain  parts  of  North  Carolina  are  two  or 
three  deep.  A  man  may  have  purchased  a  patent  to  10,000 
acres  but  be  unable  to  find  more  than  500  after  all  the  prior 
patents  are  taken  out.     In  general  it  may  be  said  that  land  identi- 


TITLES  237 

fication,  land  description  and  title  abstracting  is  easily  five  times 
as  expensive  in  the  thirteen  original  states  as  compared  with 
work  of  the  same  quahty  in  the  states  which  are  divided  up  into 
townships.  Naturally  the  cost  per  acre  varies  within  wide  hmits 
but  it  may  be  of  interest  to  know  that  the  title  investigations  on 
1,000,000  acres  in  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Virginia,  North  Caro- 
lina, South  Carolina,  Georgia  and  Pennsylvania  cost  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  17  cents  per  acre  in  1918. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

OUTLINE  FOR  A  REPORT   ON  A  TRACT  OF 
WOODLAND 

Summary  and  recommendations. 
Total  amount  and  value  of  : 

Timber. 

Land. 

Other  products  (minerals,  waterpower,  residence  sites,  etc.). 
Grand  total  value. 
Total  value  per  acre. 
Best  future  use  of  tract. 
Estimated  annual  returns. 
Total  annual  returns. 
Total  annual  returns  per  acre. 
Title  complications. 

Object  of  examination. 
Valuation  of  tract. 
Formulation  of  logging  plans. 

Preparation  of  a  working  plan  for  the  future  development  of 
the  property. 

Location,  area  and  general  description. 

Town  (postofiEice  if  different),  county,  state,  watershed. 

Nearest  railway  and  road. 

Area  in  acres  (illustrate  by  map) . 

Form  —  scattered  lots  or  contiguous  tracts  (illustrate  by  map). 

Subdivisions  —  legal  and  natural  (illustrate  by  map) . 

Climate. 

Total  annual  precipitation  and  mean  annual  temperature  of 

nearest  U.  S.  Weather  Bureau  station. 
Estimated  annual  precipitation  and  mean  annual  tempera- 
ture for  tract. 
Frost  drainage  of  tract. 

238 


FOR  A  REPORT  ON  A  TRACT  OF  WOODLAND  239 

Topography  (illustrate  by  a  map). 

Principal  watersheds. 

Principal  mountains  or  hills. 

Geological  history  of  region. 

Geological  map  if  possible. 

Distribution  of  soil  types. 

Soil  map  if  possible. 
Settlement  (illustrate  by  map). 

Nearest  towns  or  villages. 

Population  per  square  mile  of  general  region  and  particular 
being  examined. 

Timber. 
Amount  —  total  stand  by  species  and  subdi\asions  of  tract 

(table). 
Quality  and  market  value  by  species  and  products  (table) 

Damage  from  fire,  insects  and  fungi. 
Cost  of  logging  and  manufacture  for  market. 
Lumber  —  felling  and  bucking,   brush  disposal,  skidding, 

hauling,  milling,  seasoning,  selling  and  profit. 
Other  products  —  cost  of  steps  in  manufacture. 
Logging  plan  (illustrate  by  map). 
Stumpage  values  by  species  and  subdivisions. 

Table. 
Growth  —  best    species;     reproductive    capacity;     estimated 
yield  per  acre  per  annum  in  cubic  feet  and  dollars,  proba- 
bility of  damage  from  fire,  insects,  fungi,  trespass,  etc. 

Land. 

Amount  by  quality  classes  (table) : 
Tillage  land. 
Grazing  land. 
Forest  land. 
Areas  suitable  for  other  purposes. 

Hydroelectric  purposes: 

Location  of  reservoirs,  dams,  power  houses,  etc. 

Estimated  cost  of  development. 

Estimated  horse  power  to  be  developed  and  its  value. 


240  FOR   A  REPORT  ON  A  TRACT  OF  WOODLAND 

Residences  and  stores: 
Number  and  location. 
Annual  rentals. 

Recreation : 

Number  and  location  of  hotels. 
Estimated  cost  and  returns. 
Fishing  and  hunting  possibilities. 

Minerals: 

Kinds,  quality,  and  approximate  location. 
Development  work  on  this  and  adjoining  properties. 
Value  by  quality  classes  (table). 
Estimated  returns  per  acre  per  annum  from  use  for: 
Agriculture  (tillage  and  grazing). 
Forest  production. 
Hydroelectric  purposes. 
Stores  or  residences. 

Recreation  —  hotels,  fishing  and  hunting. 
Mining 

Titles. 
Legal  history  of  tract. 
Kind  of  titles. 

Doubtful  lots  and  their  legal  defects. 
Local  authorities  and  witnesses: 

Attorneys. 

Surveyors. 

Guides. 

List  of  maps. —  Maps  can  best  be  made  on  the  same  size  paper 
as  the  rest  of  the  report  even  if  this  necessitates  making 
more  maps  or  reducing  the  scale  for  special  large  area  maps 
and  using  an  enlarged  scale  for  small  area  maps.  Several 
maps  of  workable  size  are  better  than  one  large  map  which 
attempts  to  show  all  the  essential  features.  What  can  be 
advantageously  combined  in  one  map  differs  from  tract  to 
tract  but  the  tendency  is  always  to  try  to  economize  and  put 
too  much  on  one  map. 
Area,  form  and  subdivision  map. 


FOR  A  REPORT  ON  A  TRACT  OF  WOODLAND  241 

Topographic  map  —  preferably  with  contours,  streams  and 

ridges. 
Geological  map  —  geological  formations. 
Soil  map  —  soil  types. 
Settlement  map  —  principal  settlements,  railroads,  roads  and 

trails. 
Timber  type  map. 
Timber  stand  map. 
Logging   plan   map  —  location   of   roads,    drivable    streams, 

camps,  mill  sites,  etc. 
Land  type  map. 
Hydroelectric  map  —  development  plan  showing  reservoir  and 

power-plant  sites  —  detail  maps  of  important  features. 
Residence  and  store  location  map. 
Recreation  map  —  hotel  sites,  fishing  and  hunting  grounds, 

trails,  roads,  etc. 
Mineral    map  —  mineralized    areas,    development    locations, 

trails,  roads  and  railroads. 

Photographs  should  he  taken  to  illustrate  the  following  features: 
Topography. 
Geological  structure. 
Settlement. 

Timber  types,  quality,  damage,  and  growth. 
Logging  developments  —  roads,   camps,   driving  dams,   mill 

sites,  local  logging  methods  and  equipment. 
Land  types  —  local  agricultural  methods  and  equipment. 

Hydroelectric  development  possibilities: 

Proposed  reservoir  and  power  sites. 
Residence  and  store  locations  and  local  types. 

Recreation  possibilities: 

Hotel  sites  kinds  of  game  and  fish. 
Local  mining  developments. 

Diagrams  illustrating  the  following  points  may  often  be  employed  to 
advantage: 
Cross  sections  of  topographic  features. 


242  FOR   A   REPORT  ON  A  TRACT  OF  WOODLAND 

Geological  structure. 

Relative  timber  growth  by  species  and  types. 
Relative  value  by  timber  species  and  types. 
Relative  value  of  land  types. 

Relative  incomes  and  capital  investment  from  various  types  of 
development. 


INDEX 


Alaska,  climate,  138 

forest  distribution,  138 

coast  forests,  139 

interior,  141 

timber  values,  142 

land  values,  145 

titles,  147 
Alder,  43 

Arborvitae  (white  cedar),  48, 50, 176, 187 
Ash,  white,  21,  23,  27,  61,  63,  65,  169, 

171,  176 
Ash, red,  30 
Aspen,  41,  loi,  102 
Balsam,  eastern,  i,  18,  21,  27 
Balsam,  western,  134.     See  also  Fir 
Basswood,  18,  21,  23,  27,  176 
Beech,  18,  21,  23,  27,  34,  176 
Birch,  black,  cherry,  18,  21,  27,  34,  43 
Birch,  gray,  30, 31, 34, 43 
Birch,  paper,  i,  18,  21,  27 
Birch,  white,  139,  141 
Birch,  yellow,  18,  21,  23,  27 
Bottomlands,  southern,  distribution,  61 

subtypes,  63 

damage,  63 

growth,  63 

timber  valuation,  64 

land  values,  69 

titles,  70 
Braniff,  E.  A.,  171 
Bryant,  R.  C,  178,  184 
Butler,  O.  M.,  201 
Butternut,  34,  42 
Canal  Zone,  V 

Cedar,  incense,  114,  118,  119,  120 
Cedar,  eastern  red,  75,  76.  176 
Cedar,  western  red,  104,  106,  109,  130, 
131,  132,  133,  136,  139,   141,  143, 
176,  178,  186,  188 


Cedar,  West  Indian,  150,  158,  170 

Cedar,  white  (see  arborvitae) 

Cedar,  yellow,  139,  143 

Chapparal  type,  84 

Charcoal,  43 

Cherry,  black,  79,  176 

Cherry,  pin,  19 

Chestnut,  21,  27,  73,  176 

Cooperage,  44,  174 

Cordwood,  26,  38,  50,  82,  85,  170,  173, 

194 
Corkwood,  15 
Cottonwood,  61,  63,  64,  65,  67,  68,  139, 

140 
Cucumber  tree,  73 
Cypress,  eastern,  66,  176 
Cypress,  Lawson,  130,  133,  136 
Ebony,  151,  158,  176 
Ehn,  23,  34,  45 
Estimating,  methods  and  costs,  4,  19, 

36,  64, 152,  163-166 
Extract  wood,  173,  196 
Fernow,  B.  E.,  209 
Fir,  alpine,  89,  95,  100,  loi 
Fir,  amabihs,  131 
Fir,  Douglas,  distribution,  1 29 

associates,  130 

growth,  131 

timber  valuation,  131 

land  values,  136 

titles,  137 
Fir,  grand,  131 
Fir,  white,  114,  115,  118,  119,  120,  125, 

128 
Fisher,  R.  T.,  124 
Frothingham,  E.  H.,  25,  40 
Graves,  H.  S.,  22 
Gum,  red,  66,  176 
Gum,tupelo,  67,  176 


243 


244 


INDEX 


Hardwoods,  northern,  distribution,  i6 

subtypes,  i8 

damage,  19 

growth,  19 

estimating  cost,  19 

uses,  21,  26 

logging,  25 

milling,  25 

sale  values,  27 

stumpage  prices,  27 

land  values,  27 

titles,  28 
Hardwoods,  southern,  distribution,  71 

types  and  subtypes,  73 

damage,  74 

growth,  75 

tunber  valuation,  76 

land  values,  80 

titles,  81 
Hawaii,  V 

Hawley  and  Hawes,  6,  22 
Hemlock,  black,  140 
Hemlock,  eastern,  18,  21,  27,  34,  40,  177 
Hemlock,  western,  104,  106,  no,  124, 

125,  131,  132,  133,  136,  143,  144 
Hickory,  176 

Shagbark,  34,  42 
Hopkins,  A.  D.,  75 
Hubert,  E.  E.,  106 
Juniper,  81,  83,  89 
Kellogg,  R.  S.,  141,  225 
Land  valuation,  area  determination,  219 

agricultural  use,  221 

grazing  use,  222 

misc.  uses,  223 

forestry  use,  224 
Larch,  eastern  (tamarack),  48 
Larch,  western,  134 
Larch,  western,  89,  95,   100,  131,  134, 

136,  166,  176 
Larsen,  L.  T.,  171 
Laths,  169,  173 
Lignum  vitae,  61,  151 
Locust,  black,  75,  79 
Logwood,  151 
Lumber,  prices,  VI,  177 

grades,  169-172 

logging  costs,  184 


Lumber,  milling  costs,  192 

markets,  207 

cost  of  growing,  213 
Mahogany,  61,  79,  150,  154,  158,  170, 

175,  176 
Mangrove,  149,  152,  156,  159 
Maple,  176 

hard,  18,  21,  23,  27 

soft,  21,  27,  50 
Munger,  T.  T.,  89,  91 
Murphy,  L.  S.,  149 
Oak,  44 

black,  31,  75,  176 

chestnut,  74 

Uve,  61,  65,  69 

red,  18,  21,  27,  34,  176 

tanbark,  125 

white,  18,  21,  34,  176 
Padouk, 154 
Philippines,  forest  distribution,  152 

dipterocarp  types,  153 

molave  type,  155 

mangrove  type,  156 

pine  type,  156 

beach  type,  156 

mossy  type,  157 

timber  values,  157 

land  values,  160 

land  titles,  162 
Pine,  bristle  cone,  99 
Pine,  Cuban,  54,  57 
Pine,  eastern  white,  distribution,  18,  29 

subtypes,  30 

damage,  32 

growth,  34 

estimating  cost,  36 

uses,  21 

grades,  38 

logging,  38 

miUing,  39 

stumpage  prices,  37 

land  values,  46 

titles,  47 
Pine,  Jeffrey,  114 
Pine,  jack,  30,  31 
Pine,  timber,  99 
Pine,  lodgepole,  distribution,  95 

growth,  95 


INDEX 


245 


Pine,  lodgepole,  timber  values,  97 

land  values,  98 

titles,  98 
Pine,  pitch,  30,  31,  54 
Pine,  pond,  54 
Pine,  red,  30,  34,  36 
Pine,  scrub,  54,  55,  76 
Pine,  short  leaf,  54,  74,  78 
Pine,  silver,  distribution,  104 

associates,  104 

growth,  106 

damage,  106 

timber  values,  106 

land  values,  no 

titles.  III 
Pine,  slash,  55,  56,  57 
Pine,  southern  type,  distribution,  52 

subtypes,  53 

damage,  54 

growth,  55 

estimating  costs,  56 

stumpage  prices,  57 

uses,  57 

grades,  57 

logging,  58 

land  values,'s9 

titles,  60 
Pine,  sugar,  distribution,  112 

associates,  114 

growth,  115 

damage,  115 

timber  values,  116 

land  values,  120 

titles,  121 
Pine,  western  yellow,  distribution,  87 

damage,  89 

growth,  90 

timber  valuation,  91 

land  values,  93 

titles,  94 
Pine,  white  bark,  95 
Pinon  and  juniper  type,  distribution,  81 

growth,  82 

timber  values,  82 

land  values,  82 

titles,  83 
Poplar,  yellow,  79,  176 
Plummer,  F.  G.,  85 


Poles,  50,  109,  170,  173,  196 
Porto  Rico,  climate,  148 

forest  distribution,  149 
Posts,  so,  197 

Pulpwood,  10,  170,  173,  196 
Redwood,  distribution,  122 

associates,  124 

growth,  125 

timber  values,  1 25 

land  values,  126 

titles,  127 
Reports,  outline  for,  238 
Roth,  F.,  223 
Rubber,  159 
Schenck,  C.  A.,  203 
Sequoia,  128 
Shingles,  109,  169,  173 
Spruce,  black,  139,  140,  141 
Spruce,  Colorado  blue,  99 
Spruce,  Engelmann,  distribution,  99 

associated  species,  99 

growth,  100 

timber  values,  100 

land  values,  102 

titles,  103 
Spruce,  northern,  distribution,  i,  18 

associated  species,  i 

damage,  2 

growth,  4 

estimating  4 

stumpage  prices,  6,  12 

uses,  10,  21 

grades  of  lumber,  10 

logging,  8 

milling,  10 

land  values,  13 

titles,  13 
Spruce,  Sitka,  124,  125,  130,  131,  133, 

136,  139,  141,  143,  144,  189 
Spruce,  white,  139,  140,  141,  187 
Swamp  type,  distribution,  48 

subtypes,  48 

damage,  49 

growth,  49 

estimating  cost,  49 

stumpage  prices,  50 

uses,  50 

land  values,  51 


246 


INDEX 


Swamp  type,  titles,  51 

Tamarack,  Alaskan,  13.9 

Tamarack,  eastern,  48,  50 

Tanbark,  41,  170,  196 

Teak,  155 

Ties,  45,  50,  97,  170,  173,  196 

Timber  valuation,  estimating,  163 

quality  of  timber,  166 

sale  values,  168 

logging  costs  for  timber,  184 

cost  of   logging  and   manufacturing 
other  products,  194 

profit,  197 


Timber  Valuation,  freight  charges,  200 

stumpage  prices,  204 
Titles,  marking  forest  land,  230 

boundary  surveys,  231 

investigations  of  title,  233 
Turpentine,  56,  91 
Walnut,  black,  42,  77,  171,  176 
Weir,  J.  R.,  106 
Whitford,  H.  N.,  159 
Willow,  43 
Wood  alcohol,  173 
Zeigler,  E.  A.,  225 


N.  C.  State  College 


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